Overview
- Police in Tirupati arrested P Vishwanath, 45, who they accuse of targeting women who lived alone across Andhra Pradesh, Kerala and Karnataka.
- Investigators link him to at least 21 offences, including six murders, with at least four killings in and around Tirupati, according to police.
- Officers say he used multiple aliases and forged identity documents, including altered Aadhaar cards, to hide and move between states.
- Police recovered stolen gold, about Rs 20 lakh in cash, and the autorickshaw used in the crimes, and they arrested an alleged accomplice named Rajamma.
- He had escaped Kerala police custody in a 2018 murder case, after which a Rs 2 lakh reward was announced, and a multi-state review of other cases is now underway.