Youth addicted to gambling robs woman, pushes her into well, survives for 21 hours

HYDERABAD: A 21-year-old student, addicted to gambling, pushed a 55-year-old woman into a well after robbing her. The police have arrested the youth identified as Dinesh Reddy and the owner of a jewelry shop who bought the stolen gold. The incident happened on July 1 at Karimnagar district in Telangana. The woman identified as Tangarala Lakshmi, a plantation worker, clung on to the well for 21 hours, fighting for her life.

When Lakshmi, who had gone to work, did not return home even after evening, her son filed a complaint with the police. Initially, the police took it as a normal missing person case. However, the shocking information came to light the next morning when the locals rescued Lakshmi from the well in the village garden.

A stranger approached Lakshmi, offering her a job in the garden. He then booked a Rapido bike and took her towards Thimmapur village. However, since there were CCTV cameras and a large crowd there, the accused changed his plan. Later, the police say, he took the woman to another deserted place in his own bike.

After taking her to the deserted place, he threatened Lakshmi and robbed her of five grams of gold ornaments, 20 grams of silver anklets and money. The accused wanted to kill her as he believed that she could identify him if she lived. He then pushed her into a deep well.

The accused noticed Lakshmi, who had fallen into the well, was holding onto the rope there. With this, the accused cut the rope with a knife to make sure that Lakshmi would die. However, Lakshmi, who knew how to swim, somehow got hold of the rope stayed in the well water all night. Since the area was deserted, no one heard her screams at night. Farmers who arrived the next morning found her in the well.

In an investigation conducted by a special team led by the Police Commissioner, the police reached the accused Dinesh Reddy by examining the booking information of the Rapido bike, CCTV footage and mobile phone records. During interrogation, the accused confessed to the crime.

Dinesh had a debt of about Rs 4 lakhs through online apps and betting. The police said that he planned to rob the woman to pay off this debt. The accused was produced in the court and remanded.