Friend planned $50K kidnapping, but baby died


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BRIDGEPORT, PA ? A family friend hoped to hold a baby girl hostage to get $50,000 from her software-engineer parents but instead killed her and her grandmother in a botched kidnapping, according to police in a Philadelphia suburb.

Raghunandan "Raghu" Yandamuri, 26, knew the infant's parents both had good jobs, and he crafted a ransom note threatening to kill their daughter if they did not leave the money at a local supermarket, police said in an affidavit filed Friday.

"It's up to you to decide, do you want your 1-year-old or five months of your income?" the lengthy, typed note said.

The plot unraveled when he dropped the baby as he juggled her and a kitchen knife and struggled with her paternal grandmother, who was watching 10-month-old Saanvi Venna on Monday during a six-month visit from India, the affidavit said.

A throng of people jeered at him, shouting "Hang him!" and other taunts, as he was led into court Friday afternoon in a bulletproof vest.

Yandamuri was being held without bail on two counts of murder, kidnapping, robbery and other charges pending a preliminary hearing set next week. He does not have a lawyer and did not enter a plea at a brief arraignment Friday. He told a judge he is not a U.S. citizen and was given time to make a private call to the Indian consulate.

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eye for an eye... I vote string him up...

If society started killing people who kill, I am willing to bet we would have a lot less killers out there.

The US does, and so do other countries. But in the US, they can sit on deathrow for such a long time if given the death penalty.

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The sad thing is that he will get better treatment on Death row (until his ultimate end) than he would get in an Indian prison.

Well, not being a US citizen, nor him having a green card, the most likely thing that'll happen to him is he'll get deported. Will India jail him, maybe they will, maybe they won't.

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Disgusting. The guy deserves all he gets.

If society started killing people who kill, I am willing to bet we would have a lot less killers out there

Surely, we would have more?

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Well, not being a US citizen, nor him having a green card, the most likely thing that'll happen to him is he'll get deported. Will India jail him, maybe they will, maybe they won't.

No they don't just let murderers go home, usually deportation happens after any sentences have been served (and no parole). In this case, PA have death penalty, so this is what he will probably get for such a crime, and his body will be reinterred to India (if his family pays for it).

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Well, not being a US citizen, nor him having a green card, the most likely thing that'll happen to him is he'll get deported. Will India jail him, maybe they will, maybe they won't.

it sounds like he killed to women.... so they probably wont send him to jail or kill him a slap on the wrists probably

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Disgusting. The guy deserves all he gets.

Surely, we would have more?

i meant it kind of two fold sarcastically ..yes, the killers would be dead, so scratch them off the list. I think too if people KNEW that the sentence for murder was the cost of your OWN life, it would deter the pre-planned murders. You would still have flash anger killings since people are not thinking 100% clear in times like that (example: walking in on your wife will she is voluntarily having sex with her boyfriend). Over all, there would be a DRASTIC drop in killings since most killers are scared only for 1 thing, their own life.
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there would be a DRASTIC drop in killings since most killers are scared only for 1 thing, their own life.

I think if you do some searching you will find evidence that it infact does not work.

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The US does, and so do other countries. But in the US, they can sit on deathrow for such a long time if given the death penalty.

Not near as often and as fast as they should. I am actually shocked some privately funded group doesn't do this "clean up" work already funded by some "Oprah Rich" humanity figure. If I had billions, I know I would have a hit squad for the worst of the worst. Child Murders, child rapists, extreme child abuse, most killers, and some others would be dead upon conviction from the courts. And even some without the conviction of the courts. (sometimes red tape just gets in the way). No 20 years waiting for death soaking up millions in taxpayer funds, no appeals that torment the survivors or victims, no last minute saves from the do-gooders, justice in a quick easy fashion.

I think if you do some searching you will find evidence that it infact does not work.

so, would this not deter you? what about anyone you know? Do you know anyone that would STILL kill even knowing that their own life would be the price? i am willing you know ZERO percent of people that will say yes.
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eye for an eye... I vote string him up...

If society started killing people who kill, I am willing to bet we would have a lot less killers out there.

No, we'd have the same amount. Those who kill murderers are themselves murderers, driven by prehistoric human anger.

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If society started killing people who kill, I am willing to bet we would have a lot less killers out there.

You would think that but it's simply not true. For example, compare the murder rate of the US and the UK - even though the US has the death penalty and stricter prison sentences the murder rate is actually four times higher. Hardened killers have a complete disregard for the law and are not going to be deterred by anything, while most murders are committed in the heat of the moment. In this case it wasn't even murder but manslaughter. Social factors play a much greater role in the rate of crime than 'deterrents' like the death penalty.

Society needs a justice system that reflects modern times. The era of biblical style retribution is thankfully long over in most countries, with the US lagging half a century behind as usual.

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i meant it kind of two fold sarcastically ..yes, the killers would be dead, so scratch them off the list. I think too if people KNEW that the sentence for murder was the cost of your OWN life, it would deter the pre-planned murders. You would still have flash anger killings since people are not thinking 100% clear in times like that (example: walking in on your wife will she is voluntarily having sex with her boyfriend). Over all, there would be a DRASTIC drop in killings since most killers are scared only for 1 thing, their own life.

Except you know that doesn't work right? As proven many many times over. The more you reduce the value of life, the more killing there is, plain and simple.

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You all must have a different mind set from a different culture. I disagree and think killers deserve death. Sorry.

I'm not commenting on what you agree with or what I think. I am telling you as a fact that when people reduce life down to such a low level, then violent crimes rise.

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eye for an eye... I vote string him up...

If society started killing people who kill, I am willing to bet we would have a lot less killers out there.

I agree. They don't have to worry about punishment so they don't care one way or another.

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Wow, I'm surprised how many people on here are so pro-death penalty.

1) What if a person is wrongly convicted? You can't undo a death penalty.

2) Even if you kill the murderer, it's not like the dead person will come back to life. I think people should be given a second chance to repent. A person who has realized what they have done is wrong and turn themselves for the better, is better than a person who is killed without realizing their wrongdoings. There is no justification for murder, and people should most definitely pay for their actions, but taking their life is a terrible thing.

Sure one may argue that those who see no value in life should not deserve life. But if we as a society value life more, and give them a chance, maybe that would be the more constructive thing to do.

I know I sound like a idealistic liberal (Honestly I'm a realist conservative at heart lol :p ) but I have seen truly terrible people who have turned from what they've done and it is really a great thing to see. It's amazing to see and hear of those accounts. Sure, they have done wrong in the past, yes they are still paying for it, which they should. I also agree there is nothing they can do to undo the hurt. There are also many who will never see their mistakes. But why should we give everyone death penalty for those who will never realize they're wrong, rather than giving everyone a chance for those who are truly sorry for what they've done?

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No, we'd have the same amount. Those who kill murderers are themselves murderers, driven by prehistoric human anger.

It's likely the case that it wouldn't be a one to one correspondence between murderer and retribution murderer so you'd probably be wrong there. :p

Joking aside, I'm not a fan of murder as a solution to murder, but if I had to choose between one and the other, I'd rather the retribution motivated one. It's the lesser evil. One might murder me for any number of reasons for personal gain while the other would do so if I committed the crime of murdering. I'll take my chances.

Wow, I'm surprised how many people on here are so pro-death penalty.

1) What if a person is wrongly convicted? You can't undo a death penalty.

2) Even if you kill the murderer, it's not like the dead person will come back to life. I think people should be given a second chance to repent. A person who has realized what they have done is wrong and turn themselves for the better, is better than a person who is killed without realizing their wrongdoings. There is no justification for murder, and people should most definitely pay for their actions, but taking their life is a terrible thing.

Sure one may argue that those who see no value in life should not deserve life. But if we as a society value life more, and give them a chance, maybe that would be the more constructive thing to do.

I know I sound like a idealistic liberal (Honestly I'm a realist conservative at heart lol :p ) but I have seen truly terrible people who have turned from what they've done and it is really a great thing to see. It's amazing to see and hear of those accounts. Sure, they have done wrong in the past, yes they are still paying for it, which they should. I also agree there is nothing they can do to undo the hurt. There are also many who will never see their mistakes. But why should we give everyone death penalty for those who will never realize they're wrong, rather than giving everyone a chance for those who are truly sorry for what they've done?

I'm not pro-death penalty either but I do feel your argument is too idealistic. Deaths certainly can't be undone but if you look at the raw percentages, the number of wrongful convictions probably pales in comparison to the correct ones. It's definitely a scary thought to think that there can be wrongful deaths but it's a statistical tradeoff.

As it currently functions, prison hardly rehabilitates inmates. Until that is fixed, criminals that come out of prison are usually more hardened and cunning than before and are likely to cause more collateral damage to society either by committing another crime or by corrupting and dragging another person into the cycle.

The death penalty certainly is a flawed solution but it has some merits. There are worse solutions and there are better solutions. Frankly, I don't see the "giving a second chance" as a really sound solution to be honest. The better solution would be to minimize the chances of running into this dilemma to begin with, not primarily waiting for crap to hit the fan and then deal with it.

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Wow, I'm surprised how many people on here are so pro-death penalty.

1) What if a person is wrongly convicted? You can't undo a death penalty.

2) Even if you kill the murderer, it's not like the dead person will come back to life. I think people should be given a second chance to repent.

1) Then it sucks to be that person. There is no such thing as a perfect system.

2) Second chances is a VERY expensive gamble. You gamble they won't reoffend at the cost of millions of dollars.

Inefficiency is the downfall. Make it efficient. If someone murders on a Monday and its without a shadow of a doubt they did it? or plead guilty? They die on Friday.

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