RAIPUR: Four inmates of a Juvenile Observation Home in the Sarkanda police station area of Chhattisgarh's Bilaspur district killed the security guard on duty before escaping from the facility.
The deceased security guard, Narendra Kumar Khande (40), had been working at the observation home for about a year.
According to police sources, the crime took place at around 11:00 PM during Narendra's shift on the first floor. The four inmates launched a savage attack on him. They mercilessly beat him, stuffed a cloth (gamchha) into his mouth to stifle his screams, tightly bound his hands and feet, and strangled him to death.
To cover their tracks, the accused removed a security mesh on the roof to climb down, used a tree near the third floor to scale down the premises, and retrieved keys to the main gate. In a calculated move to destroy evidence, they also stole the DVR of the CCTV system, a monitor, and multiple sets of keys from the superintendent's room. They then escaped using the victim's motorcycle, which was parked outside the gate.
Preliminary inquiry revealed that the main accused had recently turned 20 years old and was scheduled to be shifted to a Bilaspur central jail soon. To avoid this transfer, he, along with three other inmates—all of whom have now crossed 18 years of age and were detained for grave offenses like murder and sexual assault—plotted the horrific escape.
After the body was discovered in the morning, senior officials including Collector Sanjay Agrawal and SSP Rajnesh Singh rushed to the spot.
"We have deployed teams to track down the suspects and are actively raiding key locations. A rigorous investigation is underway, and we are treating this matter with the utmost priority,” Rajnesh Singh, Bilaspur district police chief told the TNIE.
Under the Juvenile Justice Act, 2015, individuals aged 16 to 18 who commit heinous crimes are handled through a distinct legal process. Even after turning 18, they are placed in a 'Place of Safety' (special secure homes) for rehabilitation up to the age of 21, rather than being sent directly to adult prisons, unless specific legal criteria are met.
The daring escape has once again put a question mark on the security measures at juvenile observation homes in the state.