Suspended Amberpet SI under probe after service pistol goes missing

Hyderabad Police have launched a high-level investigation into the disappearance of a service pistol belonging to suspended Amberpet Sub-Inspector Bhanu Prakash Reddy. The officer, allegedly addicted to cricket betting, is accused of pawning gold seized during recovery operations and later reporting his pistol missing.

Hyderabad: A high-level investigation is underway into the disappearance of a service pistol belonging to suspended Amberpet Sub-Inspector B Bhanu Prakash Reddy.

The officer, who allegedly became addicted to cricket betting, reportedly pawned gold seized during recovery operations and later claimed that his official 9mm pistol had gone missing.

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The matter came to light recently when Bhanu Prakash requested relief from duty, citing his selection as an Assistant Engineer with the Pollution Control Board (PCB) in Andhra Pradesh. During inquiries related to his request, police discovered irregularities involving pawned recovery gold and the missing firearm.

According to investigators, initially, the officer claimed the pistol went missing at the police station. He later changed his statement, saying it disappeared from his residence at Himayathnagar. He further told investigators that he may have misplaced it while travelling to Vijayawada in May this year for the PCB AE examination and subsequently visiting his hometown at Rayachoti in Andhra Pradesh.

Investigators who traced the SI’s movements, have found that Bhanu Prakash stayed at a lodge in Vijayawada while writing the AE exam and kept a bag containing the pistol, books and personal items in his room. He now claims the pistol went missing from the lodge room. His return trip to the same location four days later has strengthened this suspicion.

Meanwhile, three special teams comprising Law and Order police and Task Force personnel have been formed to trace the weapon.
Senior police officials confirmed that the missing gold was recovered from a pawn broker.

On the other hand, the help of Vijayawada police has been requested by the Hyderabad police in collecting details of lodge employees, housekeeping staff, and room service workers who were present when the SI stayed there.

The footage from the surveillance cameras at the premises is being thoroughly examined for leads on the missing weapon. The Hyderabad Police is treating the case with seriousness due to the security risk posed by a missing police pistol and the misconduct of a serving officer.