Drunk Man Steals Bus In Telangana, Drives 21 Km Before Crashing Into Toll Gate

A drunk man allegedly stole a hired RTC bus from the Jangaon bus stand in Telangana and drove it for nearly 21 kilometres before crashing into a cement block at a toll gate. The accused has been taken into custody and a case has been registered, police said. 

The incident took place in the early hours of Thursday. According to police, the accused, identified as Jittaboyina Venkanna, a resident of Chennuru village in Palakurthi mandal, works as a bulldozer operator.

Venkanna had reportedly come to Jangaon due to family-related disputes and after consuming alcohol, he allegedly took the unusual step of driving away with an RTC bus that was parked at the bus stand.

The bus driver had completed his scheduled trip on Wednesday night and parked the vehicle at the bus stand before leaving for home.

Police said the driver had inadvertently left the keys inside the bus. Taking advantage of the situation, Venkanna reportedly boarded the bus and started it around 3 am on Thursday.

The accused then drove the bus towards Suryapet. After covering a distance of about 21 kilometres, the vehicle reached the Singarajupalli toll gate in Devaruppula mandal, where it collided with a cement block and came to a halt.

The incident raised suspicion among toll gate staff, who immediately informed the Devaruppula police. A team rushed to the spot and inspected the situation, police said. 

During their preliminary inquiry, it was found that Venkanna was under the influence of alcohol. He was taken into custody along with the bus and later handed over to the Jangaon police for further action, it said. 

''A case has been registered based on a complaint lodged by Ganta Gopikrishna Reddy, the owner of the rented RTC bus," Jangaon Circle Inspector Satyanarayana Reddy said. 

Police said an investigation has been launched to ascertain the sequence of events.