KEONJHAR: The body of a 20-year-old girl was recovered from a marshy area in Basantapur village within Pandapada police limits on Sunday. She was identified as Reena Dandapat of Budhakhamman Sahi in Basantapur. It is suspected that Reena was raped and murdered as her body was semi-naked and her hands tied.
Sources said Reena had gone out for some work on Saturday evening but didn’t return home in the night. Worried parents and relatives launched frantic search throughout the night but could not trace her.
In the forenoon on Sunday, some villagers found a pair of slippers and underwear near a tree and became suspicious. Later, Reena’s body was found floating in a nearby marsh.
On being informed, Sub-divisional police officer (SDPO) Prakash K Topo and Pandapada IIC Prashant Kumar Sethi rushed to the spot and started investigation. Sethi said the girl’s hands were tied with a rope and her dress ripped off. Her body was sent to the district headquarters hospital for postmortem.
“Though the deceased’s family members are yet to lodge a formal complaint, police have started investigation. We are suspecting involvement of some persons but no arrest has been made so far,” the IIC added.