A court in Andhra Pradesh’s Kakinada city on Monday sent the coach of a rifle shooting academy to judicial custody for 14 days in a case of murder and abetment to suicide.
Sadhik Khan, founder and coach of Pro Shooting Academy, who was arrested in Meerut, Uttar Pradesh, four days ago, was brought to Andhra Pradesh on Monday.
After questioning, police produced him before a court, which sent him to judicial custody for two weeks. He was subsequently shifted to Kakinada Sub‑Jail.
Police said Khan also faces allegations of forceful conversion and extortion.
On August 16, K. Nooka Raju (61), Assistant Engineer at the Panchayat Raj Department in Pithapuram mandal of Kakinada district, along with his wife Meena (58), daughter Sowjanya (38) and 10‑year‑old grandson Karthikya Reddy, jumped into the Godavari from the Road‑cum‑Rail bridge in Rajamahendravaram.
The boy was rescued by fisherfolk after being found unconscious on an island in the river. The bodies of Raju, his wife and daughter were retrieved.
A suicide note, believed to have been left by Raju in the car, alleged that Khan had been harassing his daughter after the demise of her husband Jagdish Reddy. Raju wrote that Khan had threatened to eliminate him and his grandson when they rejected his proposal and had taken their valuables. He said the family decided to end their lives as they were unable to face the atrocities against his daughter.
Based on the statement of Raju’s grandson and the suicide letter, a case was registered against Khan on charges of abetment of suicide under Section 108 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.
Later, Soujanya’s father‑in‑law Bhaskar Reddy lodged a complaint alleging Khan’s involvement in his son Jagdish Reddy’s death. He claimed his son died after a poisonous substance was injected into him on July 2.
Bhaskar Reddy said new facts came to light after speaking to his grandson, who was learning rifle shooting at Khan’s academy. He alleged Khan had started visiting their house after Jagdish’s death and tried to get closer to Soujanya.
On his complaint, a case was registered at Sarpavaram police station in Kakinada.
Kakinada SP G. Bindu Madhav told the media that Khan was arrested after a chase across five states by police teams from Kakinada and East Godavari. More than 10 teams tracked his movements. He was finally arrested in Meerut, produced before a magistrate and brought to Andhra Pradesh on a transit warrant.
The SP said Khan was avoiding phone use and online transactions to evade arrest. He was traced in Meerut through technical evidence and human intelligence, where he had taken shelter at an acquaintance’s house.
Police registered FIRs based on suicide notes of Nooka Raju and Sowjanya and Bhaskar Reddy’s complaint. According to the SP, Sowjanya was in a relationship with Khan for some days.
A case of murder, forceful conversion and extortion was registered against him in Kakinada, while in Rajamahendravaram a case was registered for abetment to suicide.
