Raghunandan Yandamuri Gambled Even after Venna Deaths

Notorious Telugu bidda Raghunandan Yandamuri continued to gamble even as the local police, the FBI, and friends and family of the Vennas were desperately searching for the baby (Saanvi Venna) he’d kidnapped and allegedly killed.

On October 22, 2012, Raghunandan Yandamuri allegedly killed 10-month-old Saanvi Venna and the baby’s 61-year-old grandmother in King of Prussia in a botched kidnapping-for-ransom incident that went horribly awry.

Three days later, on October 25, 2012, even as a huge effort was underway to locate the kidnapped baby, Raghunandan Yandamuri drove to the Valley Forge Casino Resort, a mere 4.1 miles from his house, to gamble.

It was at the Valley Forge Casino at 1160 1st Ave in King of Prussia, PA 19406 that police detectives found Raghunandan Yandamuri playing Blackjack when they were seeking to question him about the murder of Satyavathi Venna and the missing 10-month-old baby.

During questioning by the police, Yandamuri acknowledged and enacted the role he’d played in the two killings.

Gambling Obsession

Gambling is at the heart of Raghunandan Yandamuri’s crimes.

Even before moving to King of Prussia, Pennsylvania in May 2012, Raghunandan had a gambling addiction and ran up huge debts during his stay in California. He managed to discharge those debts in a California bankruptcy court.

But even after his marriage and the move to King of Prussia, Raghunandan’s fondness for gambling did not abate.

In court filings, prosecution attorneys say Raghunandan Yandamuri was a frequent visitor to the the nearby Valley Forge Casino.

Yandamuri is said to have gambled 54 times at the casino between April 13, 2012 and October 25, 2012.

Court filings, as described in media reports, show that Raghunandan Yandamuri suffered a loss of $34,800 in the three days before he killed the two Vennas.

In the kidnapping note Yandamuri left for the Venna family, he demanded a ransom of $50,000 for the baby’s safe return.

The prosecution is seeking the death penalty for Raghunandan Yandamuri.

His trial is expected to start in early 2014 at great expense to Pennsylvania tax payers.

The 27-year-old software programmer has been locked up in the Montgomery County jail since October 26, 2012.