POCSO accused who killed 6, including survivor and his own family, found dead

A man accused in a POCSO case in Telangana was found dead after slaughtering six people — the 17-year-old complainant, her mother, grandmother, his wife and their two sons — bringing an end to a two-day manhunt.

Raj Kumar's body was found on Monday in Rangareddy district. He carried out the mass killings on the night of July 10.

A bottle of suspected poison was also found beside the body, officials said.

An investigation is underway to determine the exact cause of death. Police are awaiting the post-mortem examination and forensic findings to confirm whether he died by suicide or under other circumstances.

Police said Raj Kumar had stabbed all six victims before slitting their throats. He had been on the run ever since, prompting authorities to announce a Rs 2 lakh reward for information leading to his arrest.

Twelve police teams were deployed in a massive manhunt to track him down.

At around 3 pm on Monday, residents alerted police after spotting the body of an unidentified man. A police team rushed to the spot and later identified the deceased as Raj Kumar.

According to police, Raj Kumar had previously been arrested in a case under the POCSO Act after the 17-year-old girl filed a complaint against him. He was later released on bail.

Investigators suspect the murders were driven by revenge over the criminal case.

Police said Raj Kumar first took the teenage girl to a field, where she was sexually assaulted and murdered, before killing her mother, Chityala Lakshmi (45), and grandmother, Chityala Rukkamma (65).

He then killed his wife, Parvathi Saritha (30), and their two sons, aged three and two.

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