A former army jawan in Hyderabad has been arrested for allegedly murdering his wife and attempting to dispose of her body in a gruesome manner. The accused, Guru Murthy (39), was arrested ten days after his wife, Venkata Madhavi (35), was reported missing by her mother. Police say that the crime was premeditated considering the meticulous way the crime was planned and executed to cover the tracks.
According to Rachakonda Commissioner of Police G Sudheer Babu, Murthy initially confessed to a relative about killing Madhavi. Based on this extrajudicial confession, police began questioning him. However, Murthy allegedly attempted to mislead investigators before his eventual arrest on January 28. The Commissioner confirmed that law enforcement had gathered "sufficient credible, admissible evidence" to prove the crime.
Murthy, who worked as a security guard, lived in Jillelaguda with Madhavi and their two children. The crime unfolded after the family visited Murthy's sister’s house for Sankranti celebrations on January 14. The couple left their children at the sister’s house and returned home alone that night. The next day, January 15, they repeated the visit but again returned home without their children.
On the morning of January 16, an argument broke out between the couple. Police state that Murthy physically assaulted Madhavi, causing her to collapse from her injuries. He then allegedly strangled her to death and confirmed her demise before taking further steps to cover up the crime.
Disposal of body
CCTV footage showed the couple entering their home together on the night of January 15, but Madhavi was never seen leaving. Murthy allegedly dismembered her body in the bathroom using a kitchen knife, then boiled the body parts using an immersion coil heater. He reportedly burned some remains over a kitchen flame, separated the bones, and crushed them with a stone roller.
He disposed of the powdered bones and smaller flesh pieces in the toilet and discarded the remaining bones in a household trash bin. According to police, the process took him nearly eight hours on January 16. To minimize foul odors, Murthy left the doors and kitchen windows open. The remaining body parts were allegedly dumped in a nearby lake after being carried in a bucket. Murthy then cleaned the bathroom multiple times using detergent and phenyl to remove any evidence.
Commissioner Sudheer Babu observed that the murder was not an act of sudden provocation but a premeditated crime. “He deliberately left the children at his sister's house, started a fight without reason, and proceeded with the crime,” Babu stated.
The Commissioner described Murthy’s actions as exceptionally cruel. “As a police officer, I’m not able to explain the sheer brutality of his behaviour. I even asked him how he managed to do all this. He said, ‘Madhavi was short, so I could easily cut her up,'” Sudheer Babu said.
Murthy allegedly misled Madhavi’s family, claiming she had left the house alone. Concerned for her safety, Madhavi’s mother filed a missing person report with the Meerpet police on January 18.
Based on Murthy’s confession, the case has been reclassified under Sections 103(1) (murder), 238 (causing disappearance of evidence or giving false information to shield an offender), and 85 (cruelty by husband) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).