NEW DELHI: A 52-year-old man, who allegedly abducted, raped and murdered his tenant's nine-year-old daughter in outer Delhi's Swaroop Nagar area, had disclosed the act to his family members on December 15, police sources said on Wednesday.
"During our investigation, we came to know that the accused had told his family members what he had done with the girl and he was being thrashed by his family members on December 15. Later, he took his scooter and met with an accident," sources said.
Meanwhile, the girl's body has not yet been recovered, police said.
"More than 10 teams, including the divers and the NDRF jawans, are trying to fish out the body. The search operation was stopped late in the evening due to poor visibility. The operation will resume again on Thursday," said a senior police officer.
The girl was allegedly abducted, raped and then strangled to death by her landlord, who dumped her body in a canal in outer Dehi's Swaroop Nagar, on December 12.
The accused had allegedly lured the girl on the pretext of giving her a car ride on December 12 while she was playing outside her residence, police said.
According to the investigators, the accused then took her to an isolated area where he allegedly raped her in his car.
To hide his crime, he strangled the girl and then dumped her body in the Munak Canal around 6.30 pm.
The accused later on December 15 met with an accident when he was going to some place on his scooter and was admitted at a hospital in Rohini.
The accused was unfit for statement due to multiple fractures but later confessed the crime, police said.
The victim's grandfather told reporters on Wednesday that he was not in the city when the incident took place.
"I got a call from my son on December 12. He told me that his daughter is missing from 2 pm. I asked him to call the landlord for help. My son even called him. He (the landlord) said that he is somewhere in Panipat," he said.
The victim's family members demanded strict action against the accused and said that the police could not trace the body of their child from December 12 to December 20.
"No doubt that we are getting help from the police. They checked the CCTV camera and even gave us clear clue that who is behind everything. We demand strict action against the accused. He must be given capital punishment," the victim's father told reporters.
The victim's parents said that they both are labourers by profession, adding their daughter had gone to the school on December 12.
"She returned (from school) around 1 pm and she went missing around 2 pm. Every single person from the family and the neighbours launched a search operation by their own for her. The matter was reported to the police later in the evening of December 12," the victim's grandfather said.