Auto theft convict sentenced to six months in jail in Guntur

A local court in Guntur on Monday (August 11) sentenced a man to six months’ simple imprisonment in connection with an auto-rickshaw theft case reported at the Guntur APSRTC bus stand last year.

According to Superintendent of Police S. Satish Kumar, the incident took place between 10 p.m. on August 12 and 6 a.m. on August 13, 2024, when complainant 51-year-old Derangula Veeraswamy, a member of the Vaddera community, parked his auto-rickshaw worth ₹50,000 near the bus stand and returned to find it missing.

A formal complaint was lodged on September 3, 2024, with Head Constable Shaik Kareemulla Sharif registering an FIR. Investigations led to the arrest of 33-year-old Potineni Gopi, a resident of Vadlamudi village in Chebrolu mandal, who was produced before the court.

On Monday, Honourable Judge Mohammad Gouse of the VI Additional Junior Civil Judge Court, Guntur, convicted Gopi under Section 271(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and sentenced him to six months’ simple imprisonment.

Police said Gopi has a rowdy sheet against him and is already serving a sentence in Rajamahendravaram Central Prison under the Preventive Detention Act.