Hyderabad: Sixty hours after launching an intensive manhunt for Raj Kumar, the Pocso case accused alleged to have killed six persons, including three children, police on Monday found him dead at Penjerla village in Kothur mandal of Rangareddy district, bringing the chilling murder spree to an end.Future City police commissioner Tarun Joshi said a pesticide bottle was found near the body, leading investigators to suspect that Raj Kumar had died by suicide.Police had been carrying out an extensive search operation with little success when a local villager alerted them through a Dial 100 call about an unidentified body lying amid overgrown grass in a real estate layout at Penjerla. When local police reached the spot at 3 pm, they found that the deceased was Raj Kumar, the prime accused they had been searching for since July 10 night.Addressing the media later in the day, Joshi said police recovered Raj Kumar’s mobile phone and came across a selfie video allegedly recorded around 4 pm on July 10. Police also recovered a suicide note purportedly written by Raj Kumar on a Rs 100 stamp paper.The commissioner partially played the video before the media. In it, Raj Kumar spoke about his reported plan to kill the minor girl’s family and then his own family members. He also reportedly claimed that he had entered into a relationship with the girl at her insistence and alleged that her family repeatedly extorted money from him while threatening to reveal the matter to his wife.“It was due to her (minor girl) and her family, I lost my property and suffered financial loss. They were also trying to get me arrested. Now, I don’t have much left to give to my sons. I decided to kill her family and then take the lives of my family, before I die. My family has no role in my decision,” Raj Kumar reportedly said in the video. He also reportedly accused four persons linked to the girl’s family of being responsible for his death.“We found bus tickets, mobile phone and cash. The phone was kept in flight mode. Bus tickets have to be verified to know whether he used bus service to reach Penjerla, where his body was found,” Joshi said.Police said the six murders took place at different locations linked to both families in Shabad. Investigators suspect Raj Kumar moved through several places after the killings before finally reaching Penjerla, which is home to one of his relatives.Explaining the sequence of events, Joshi said investigators suspect Raj Kumar may have taken the extreme step either on July 12 night or early July 13 morning. The exact time of death will be established after the post-mortem examination, police said and added there were no visible external injuries on the body though froth was seen oozing from his mouth.According to police, Raj Kumar reportedly went to the residence of the 16-year-old girl in Shabad and killed her mother and grandmother. The girl’s family had registered a Pocso Act case against him in May on charges of stalking.Police said Raj Kumar then allegedly abducted the minor girl in his car, drove her to a nearby lake and murdered her by attacking her with a knife. He later returned home and allegedly killed his wife and two minor sons.Subsequently, he called his father in Shabad around 11.30 pm, informed him about the murders, and stated that he too would end his life before switching off his mobile phone.Police officials also revealed that Raj Kumar had a history of attempting suicide. In 2025, he reportedly underwent treatment at a private hospital for four days following a suicide attempt linked to financial distress.
