Bengaluru: The Karnataka High Court yesterday cleared the way for the hanging of serial killer and rapist Umesh Reddy who sexually assaulted, robbed and murdered several women in different parts of the country, and also broke out of prison three times. 

The Bench rejected the convict’s appeal to commute the death penalty awarded to him to a life sentence. Justices Aravind Kumar and Pradeep Singh Yerur noted that the nature of the crimes did not merit any leniency. President Ram Nath Kovind has already rejected his mercy petition.

Umesh Reddy raped, robbed and killed over 22 women. Most of his victims were from Karnataka but a lot of the victims did not complain about the rapes due to social stigma.

Reddy was first arrested in 1997 in a rape and murder case. He managed to flee from Ballari Hindalga prison when he was in judicial custody. 

Police could not trace him until another rape and murder of a widow surfaced in Chitradurga in 1998. Reddy was arrested but he again escaped from Police custody while being taken to Court.

Investigators later traced the house he had taken on rent and found two kilograms of gold and other stolen property. But what revealed the psychotic mind of the killer were bags full of women’s inner clothing. The accused seemed to enjoy wearing the clothes of his victims. 

Prison break

Apart from being a dreaded rapist and killer, Umesh Reddy was also an expert prison breaker. He escaped from jail three times. Ballari Hindalga prison is the biggest in Karnataka and one of the safest. Almost all the notorious criminals are held there. There is no history of any prisoners escaping from high-security jail, except Umesh Reddy.

After escaping in 1998, he was caught in Bengaluru in 2002 at a salon in Yeshwanthpur. Umesh Reddy confessed to 18 rapes and murders, out of which the Police were able to prove 11 in Court. 

Sex maniac and psychopath

Umesh Reddy was like a nomad and he travelled across the country. He never stayed in the same place for over a year. He would target women who were alone at home and broke into their houses during the night. He would then rape the victims, rob them and murder them. He is a psychopath and enjoyed killing women.

Interrogation also revealed his modus operandi of targeting single women, widows and housewives, after watching them for sometime. He entered their houses on the pretext of seeking drinking water or rooms for rent. He threatened them with weapons or choked them, raped them, while unconscious or dead and made away with valuables and their inner clothing.

Once a Constable

He was a Police Constable before he was dismissed on charges of rape. He is also a fugitive former employee of a Central Police organisation. This gave him an understanding of the working of the Police Department.

He knew how to cover his tracks, making it difficult for the Police to catch him. But his luck ran out every time. He has been in jail for a large part of his life. Now he is headed to the gallows.