NRI industrialist Chigurupati Jayaram found murdered

VIJAYAWADA: A Non-Resident Indian (NRI) entrepreneur was found dead in the rear seat of his car on the side of Hyderabad-bound National Highway-65 near Nandigama, Krishna district in Friday wee hours.

The deceased has been identified as Chigurupati Jayaram, managing director of coastal bank and co-founder of Express TV. According to Krishna district SP, Sarvasreshta Tripathi, head injuries caused by a blunt object indicate it to be a murder. Read this story in Telugu

Cops said that preliminary investigation revealed that Jayaram began his journey to Vijayawada on January 30 from Hyderabad. "He (Jayaram) came to India on his own as part of vacation plans while his family members are still in US. CCTV footages at nearby toll plazas revealed that he travelled to Vijayawada on his own without a driver," Tripathi said. The SP also informed that they have formulated four teams to investigate the case and are looking into the victim's call records to find clues.

CCTV footages at nearby toll plazas show Jayaram driving his car.

Jayaram has been living with his wife and children in Florida and he had come to Viajaywada on vacation a month ago.

Back in April 2017, Jayaram hit the headlines after his, now-defunct channel, Express TV staffers cooked outside his head office in Hyderabad as a token of protest against non-payment of salaries.

The Cyberabad police did arrest him when he was the managing director of the media house, following a complaint by striking employees.