PATNA: A mysterious ‘blade-man’ has caused terror in a small town near the Bihar capital for nearly the past one month, slashing the arms of young women and girls apparently with razor blades. Police are trying to trace the culprit who they are describing as a psychopath.
As many as five young women have been attacked by this unidentified man in Masaurhi, some 31 km from Patna and under the administrative jurisdiction of Patna district, in the past one month, according to complaints lodged by the local people with police. Descriptions provided by the victims indicate that the perpetrator might be in his mid-twenties.
“This ‘blade-man’ attacks young women and girls, particularly teenage girls. He perhaps holds some little sharp weapon like a razor blade and slashes their arms with it,” said Kumari Khushbu, a councillor of Masaurhi notified area council. “The people of this small town are very worried. Young women are frightened. They still remember similar acts by a criminal in Patna some years ago. We demand that police take prompt action and nab this apparently deranged man,” said Kumari, the councillor of ward No. 15.
In April 2010, a 20-year-old man was arrested in Patna for going on a rampage with a razor blade and slashing the arms of a few dozens of young women, mostly teenagers, with a razor blade. The cops managed to catch Vidyasagar, the accused, nearly a month and a half after his terror started in the city’s Khajekalan area. Police had recovered two razor blades and a photograph of a girl, perhaps his alienated girlfriend, from his pockets.
“We are speaking with the victims of this man, who seems to be some sort of a psychopath, in order to get more details about his appearance and modus operandi. We are also reviewing the profiles of several known criminals in the area,” said Patna SSP Manu Maharaj. “We will soon nab this criminal. An incident of this kind had come to our notice earlier and we had traced him easily,” he added.