A teenager ostensibly seeking revenge for his pregnant sister’s murder led to a grisly killing on a busy street in Telangana’s Nizamabad on Thursday evening. G Santhosh, 19, brother of popular Telangana YouTuber C Vaishnavi, purportedly confessed in a selfie video that he killed her husband, C Hari Babu, whom he claimed was responsible for his sister’s death.

“I killed Hari Babu. I took revenge for my sister’s murder,” he purportedly said in the video released late Thursday night, hours after he allegedly hacked him to death with a sickle. He also said he had waited for months for justice and was turning himself in to the police.

Vaishnavi, 20, was found dead at her parental home in Jagtial district on March 17. Hari Babu was the prime suspect and was arrested a few days later, before being granted bail in July.

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According to the police, after getting out on bail, Hari Babu started selling corn for a living. CCTV footage showed him walking to a panipuri stall in Shivajinagar in Nizamabad town and having water. It showed a white car stopping on the busy street and a man running across the road with a sickle in his hand. The attacker hacked him several times on the neck and head as Hari Babu slumped to the ground. The attacker could then be seen fleeing.

Before sister’s murder, a pregnancy announcement

In March, police had said that Vaishnavi had left Hari Babu’s home over his alleged demand for additional dowry. She had returned to her parents’ residence nearby; the two were neighbours who had got married just a year earlier.

According to the police, Hari Babu went to fetch her and stayed at her residence for a night, sleeping in a separate room. Hours before her death, she posted a video announcing that she was pregnant and hoping everything would go well.

Hours before her death, she posted a video announcing that she was pregnant and hoping everything would go well. (Special Arrangement)

“I am pregnant; the scan went well today. I am unable to make reels now, but will be back soon,” she said.

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Hours later, her mother found her with stab wounds on her chest and neck, and police discovered signs of strangulation. Hari Babu was nowhere to be seen. Investigators and family members said he had been pressing her for dowry and resented her popularity online.

Videos and reels of her life and relationship had helped her amass over 50,000 subscribers on YouTube.