ATM attacker had killed woman in Andhra 10 days earlier for money

Bangalore, Nov 25: The man who wielded a machete against a 44-year-old woman in an ATM on J C Road, Bangalore, on November 19 had wielded a lethal weapon against another hapless woman with fatal consequences only 10 days earlier in Dharmavaram town of Andhra Pradesh.

Police sources said the man had used the murdered woman's debit cards to withdraw money from ATMs.

The revelation has provided fresh fillip to the investigations by the Bangalore police into the attack on Jyothi Udaya in the ATM. Police are now sure the culprit is holed up in Anantapur district of Andhra Pradesh and are hoping to nab him soon. Reports quoting Tirupati police said the culprit is believed to be moving in a car in Chittoor district.

The home-alone woman, Prameelamma, 55, was hacked to death in her Chandrababu Nagar residence in Dharmavaram on November 9. Prameelamma's murder came to light the next day. The culprit had allegedly fled with two debit cards of the woman, a senior Andhra Pradesh police officer said.

The police officer said it was suspected that the culprit attacked the woman on her legs first and managed to get her to part with the PIN, before hacking her to death. Prameelamma's mobile phone was smashed and the SIM card removed.

Police initially worked on the possibility of Prameelamma being murdered in connection with a land dispute. But the culprit used the woman's debit cards twice: at an SBI ATM in Kadiri town of Anantapur district on November 11 and a Bangalore ATM on November 15 to withdraw money. The culprit withdrew Rs 4,000 and Rs 15,000, respectively. The withdrawals came to the notice of Prameelamma's son, who alerted the police.

Didn't know to use ATM: The man is seen in CCTV fotage taking the help of another woman customer to withdraw money from SBI ATM in Kadiri. AP police sources said this indicated the man could be uneducated and not well versed with ATM transactions. He is also seen lingering around in the ATM for some time.

Bangalore police sources said the culprit had managed to clean up Prameelamma's account, leaving a paltry Rs 62 in it. They said the culprit may have been desperate for money and was hunting for more victims.

Holed up in Anantapur: A senior city police officer said they are sure Jyothi's attacker and Prameelamma's killer are one and the same and is holed up in the Anantapur region of Andhra Pradesh. After attacking Jyothi, he returned to Hindupur, another town in the region, to sell the mobile phone he had snatched from her, he pointed out.

Twenty teams of AP and Bangalore police are on the man's trail. A general alert has been sounded by the Anantapur police, who have distributed posters of the attacker at all railway stations, bus stands, police stations and gram panchayats of the region. Reports also said on November 22, a police constable was kidnapped by unidentified persons in a car when he stopped the vehicle at a police checkpost near Tirupati. They later released the constable and abandoned the car a few kilometres away. The police are believed to have obtained a machete from the vehicle.