Year In Review: Montgomery County Man Sentenced To Death In Killing Of Infant, Grandmother
By Brad Segall
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- KYW Newsradio is taking a look back at some of the top stories of 2014. A Montgomery County jury delivered two death sentences to a King of Prussia man who was convicted of murdering a ten month old girl and her grandmother during what prosecutors say was a kidnapping gone bad.
Raghu Yandamuri defended himself during the trial, continuing to maintain that he was railroaded by detectives who lied during the investigation and was coerced into admitting he killed little Saanvi Venna and her grandmother.
The jury convicted him of two counts of first degree murder and related charges.
Prosecutor Kevin Steele said, "Justice was done today. This is a case that we said from the beginning had a mountain of evidence."
Prosecutors say Yandamuri had racked up gambling debts at the Valley Forge Casino and planned to hold the girl for ransom. Steele says it's been an emotional and trying time for the family of the victims.
"It's been a long struggle for them. Two years since Mr. Venna's mother and ten month old were killed. At this point we have given them a little bit of closure."
The death penalty triggers automatic appeals to the Pennsylvania Supreme Court.
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