NEW DELHI, Apr 28:
A local court has given its nod to the extradition of a NRI fugitive, wanted in the US to stand trial for allegedly stabbing to death his wife and their two kids in Michigan in October 2008.
Allowing the plea of External Affairs Ministry, which had forwarded the extradition request of the US administration, the court asked the Centre to send Lakshminivasa Rao Nerusu to the US after the fugitive also consented to his extradition.
“In view of my above report, I hereby recommend to Union of India the extradition of fugitive criminal Lakshminivasa Rao Nerusu to the requesting state i.E. The United States of America,” additional chief metropolitan magistrate Sudesh Kumar said and allowed the plea of N K Matta, the counsel for MEA, that the alleged offences were covered under the extradition agreement between the two countries.
Lakshminivasa, who was arrested in Hyderabad after he had left the US in October 2008, was produced before the magistrate before whom he “consented” to his extradition.
As per the February 2, 2011 extradition request letter from the US Embassy to the MEA here, Lakshminivasa was wanted to stand trial in the triple murder case filed on October 31, 2008 in Michigan, Matta had said.
An arrest warrant was also issued against Lakshminivasa on October 31, 2008 by a court in the US, he said.
As per the request, Vanketeswara Nerusu, brother of the fugitive criminal, had approached the police department in the US on October 27, 2008 with a report that he had not seen or heard anything about his brother’s family since two weeks.
It said the police officers went to Lakshminivasa’s residence and found that it was locked. After obtaining keys from the apartment’s management, they opened the door and found the bodies of his wife, his daughter and son lying in a pool of blood.
During investigation, it was found that Lakshminivasa’s family died some days ago and six knives were also recovered from his residence, the request letter said.
It also said that Vanketeswara had told the police that the accused was unemployed and had lost his money in stock market and had attacked his wife on various occasions in the past.
It was also mentioned that as per the investigation conducted, it was found that on October 13, 2008, Lakshminivasa had rented a car and had also purchased a ticket on the first available flight to India.
While recommending Lakshminivasa’s extradition, the court held that the offence alleged against him were “extraditable” and the details furnished by the US along with their request for extradition “prima facie” shows commission of offence and “makes out the case for extradition of fugitive criminal”. (PTI)
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