King of Prussia, PA – Shiva Venna left work Monday afternoon to check in on his 10-month-old daughter, Saanvi , who was in the care of his mother. He arrived at his Upper Merion apartment to find his mother murdered, and his baby girl missing.
Local, state, and federal authorities are now working together to find the missing child, who was allegedly abducted between 8 am and 1 pm. Investigators identified the child’s dead grandmother as Satyavathi Venna, who was visiting her son and his family from India.
Venna returned home from work to check on the pair when a neighbor called, concerned that they were unable to get a hold of 61-year-old Satyavathi and the child. The infant, Saanvi Venna, was abducted from the Marquis Apartment complex in King Prussia. Friends of the family stated that Shiva Venna, the child’s father, called police after he discovered his mother dead and his daughter missing. The baby’s mother, Chenchu Latha Punuru, was at work when the homicide and abduction were discovered. Investigators issued an Amber Alert for the baby girl just before 5 pm.
USA Today reports that Montgomery County District Attorney Risa Vetri Ferman said “investigators are focusing all their resources on reuniting Saavni Venna with her parents,” adding that the grandmother’s murder and the child’s abduction are “intricately connected.” To that end, investigators have not released information regarding how the girl’s grandmother was killed or if there are currently any suspects in the case.
“All of our resources are focused on finding Saavni and reuniting her with her parents,” Ferman asserted. “The search for the child is intricately connected to the homicide investigation.”
On Tuesday, investigators searched the apartment complex , even draining the pool in search of clues. A neighbor of the family, Vasu Velaga, pleaded, “Please don’t do any harm to the kid. Please release her immediately. Please inform the police.”
A press conference was held Monday night to get word out about the missing child. Saavni’s father spoke: “If someone finds my baby could you please bring my baby back?” The child’s father pleaded. “Don’t do any harm to my baby.”
Madhukar Sanikommu, 42, a cousin of Saanvi’s father, said the family was trying to hold onto hope that the girl would be found, adding “We’re all devastated right now.”
Saavni is reportedly Asian-India, who is 2’6? tall and weighs 21 pounds. She has black hair and brown eyes. She was last seen wearing a white dress with pink flowers. She was wearing jewelry.
