Wednesday, November 28, 2012

A man charged with killing his neighbors' baby and the girl's grandmother in a botched kidnapping is in court near Philadelphia awaiting his preliminary hearing.

Authorities say 26-year-old Raghunandan Yandamuri hoped to get $50,000 ransom from the infant's parents, both of them software engineers.

Prosecutors say the grandmother, 61-year-old Satyavathi Venna, let the suspect in while the parents were at work on Oct. 22.

They say Yandamuri fatally stabbed the woman during a struggle and suffocated the baby. According to a police affidavit, he later led investigators to the body of the missing 10-month-old, Saanvi Venna, in a basement fitness center.

Yandamuri has not yet entered a plea.

About a half-dozen Venna family members are also in court.