A POCSO court in Chittoor on Friday (July 10, 2026) sentenced a 25-year-old man to rigorous life imprisonment for the rape and murder of a three-and-a-half-year-old girl in Vadamalapeta, Tirupati district.Judge Aruna Sarika, the District Principal Judge and in charge of the POCSO court, also imposed a fine of ₹10,000 on the convict, Pamula Nagaraju alias Sushanth. The court directed the Tirupati District Collector to pay ₹10 lakh in compensation to the victim’s family from the State government.According to the prosecution, on November 1, 2024, Nagaraju lured the child, who was playing outside her house in AM Puram Yanadi Colony, with snacks. He took her to a deserted area, sexually assaulted her, and later strangled her to death to prevent identification.The girl’s mother lodged a complaint at the Vadamalapeta police station that night. The Puttur sub-division police investigated the case and filed the charge sheet. Published - July 10, 2026 09:01 pm IST