Iowa: Mystery shrouds the death of four members of a Telugu family who were shot and killed at their home in West Des Moines city, Iowa, in the US. Sunkara Chandrasekhar (44), his wife Lavanya (41), and their two sons, aged 15 and 10, were shot and killed, a police statement said. The family belonged to Tsundur town in Andhra Pradesh’s Guntur district and had been living in the US for at least two decades.
On Saturday, at around 10 am, a local resident dialed 911 after being informed about gunshots being heard in Chandrasekhar’s house. Police officials found the four lying dead with gunshot wounds. Sources close to the family said they had moved into the house in March. A family friend, who is also a member of the Telugu Association of North America, said that Chandrasekhar has been suffering from depression for a while and that there might have been a dispute in the family.
In an Instagram post, local police explained that at the time of the shooting other family members, including two adults and two children, were living in the house as guests. After discovering the bodies, one of them rushed out looking for help. He found someone who then called 911. The police have not revealed the identities of the guests.
Although the police gave no detail about motive, they said there was no threat to the community. They have also said that investigations had revealed that at the time of the gun being fired, no outsider had entered the house. This is being interpreted by many as pointing to a family dispute. Chandrasekhar worked for the Iowa department of public safety’s technology services bureau. Lavanya was a software developer.
