A 72-year-old woman was murdered in her house at Ayyannapalem of Pedagantyada area under the New Port Police station limits today evening.
The dead woman has been identified as B Mahalakshmi, who owned a three-storied building in which she stayed on the ground floor while her elder son stayed on the top floor.
According to the police, a couple posing as husband and wife came to her about two days ago under the garb of tenants interested in renting out a portion in the first floor and also gave her an advance.
The couple came today and requested the woman to break a coconut symbolising an auspicious beginning.
Noticing that nobody was in the building at that time, the couple strangulated the woman and made off with her ear rings by cutting off both her ears.
After a complaint, New Port police inspector Srinivasa Rao and his team rushed to the spot and collected some clues.
Her body was sent to the King George Hospital for post mortem and an investigation is on.
