NEW DELHI : A 3-year-old girl child was allegedly kidnapped, raped and ultimately strangulated to death in southwest Delhi’s Kapashera area by her neighbour, who later dumped the child’s body in a marshy drain, an official said on Friday.
The accused, identified as Anil (34), was caught from a bus while he was on his way to Kanpur. Later, when cops took him to recover the deceased’s body, Anil snatched their pistol and attempted to flee but was shot by the police.
Sharing details of the sensational case, DCP (South West) Rohit Meena said the kidnapping of an infant girl child by a neighbour was reported from Kapashera by the victim’s father. Cops immediately rushed to the location and initiated searches for the missing girl.
The victim’s family told cops that they had been staying in Kapashera for the past five years at a rented accomodation. On May 22, their toddler daughter was playing in front of their home. “At that time, one Anil who lives in their neighbourhood kidnapped the girl,” the family told cops.
Accordingly, the police registered an FIR under section 363 (kidnapping) of the IPC and launched a massive search operation to trace the girl.
“The police obtained CCTV footage of the cameras in the vicinity and on one camera, at 7:05 pm, the accused Anil could be seen with the girl, going towards Ganda Nala. The same camera captured him returning alone, without the girl at around 7:25 pm,” the senior officer said.
On further probe, cops found that the accused Anil was leaving the city. “He was moving towards Sohna so we dispatched a team immediately in that direction with pictures of the accused,” the officer said, adding that multiple buses and vehicles were checked on the route.
Finally, the suspect was apprehended at about 11.55 pm from inside a bus heading towards Kanpur, UP. The police interrogated the accused Anil on their way back to Delhi.
“Initially, he denied having played any role whatsoever in this kidnapping. But on sustained interrogation he broke down and admitted having killed and dumped the little girl in a marshy drain located at the border of Gurugram and Kapashera,” the DCP said.
The accused led the police team to the said drain; the police conducted a search for the body of the victim girl in a vast expanse of marshy drain adjoining dense bushes and heaps of garbage. The search operation, which extended over an hour, that too in the dark, led the cops to the deceased’s body dumped in the drain.
The DCP said when the police team was searching for the body, the accused Anil saw an opportunity to escape by grabbing a “loaded” service revolver from a police personnel.
He even fired one shot at the cops, however, they were not injured. In retaliation, cops fired at the accused and a bullet hit him after which he was taken to Indira Gandhi Hospital.
The police have registered an FIR under sections 363 (kidnapping), 376 (rape) and 302 (murder) of the IPC and section 6 of the POCSO Act and a separate FIR lodged under sections 353 (Assault or criminal force on public servant), 307 (attempt to murder) of the IPC.
Snatches pistol, fires at cops
While the cops were searching for the body, the accused Anil saw an opportunity to escape by grabbing a “loaded” service revolver from a police personnel. He even fired one shot at the cops, however, they were not injured. In retaliation, cops fired at the accused and a bullet hit him after which he was taken to Indira Gandhi Hospital.