Out on bail, 21-year-old rape accused sexually assaults minor in Nihal Vihar 4-year-old raped by sanitation worker in Naraina
REPEAT OFFENCE Suspect’s father held for helping him dispose of body, police say Rajender has another rape case against him
NEW DELHI: A 21-year-old rape accused, out on bail, was arrested on Monday for raping and killing a seven-year-old girl in outer Delhi’s Nihal Vihar Park area two nights ago, police said. His father was arrested for allegedly helping him disposing the body.
The suspected rapist, Rajender, allegedly abducted the minor on Saturday around 8 pm when she had gone to the local market to buy momos. Police said that the girl was with her younger sister who is speech-impaired.
“Rajender was returning home from one of his friend’s wedding when he spotted the girl. He lured her to his room with chips and snacks,” said an investigator in the case who did not wish to be identified. The girl’s younger sister, meanwhile, had left for home.
Rajender allegedly tied up the girl before raping her. “He used the same ropes to strangle her and later bludgeoned her with a brick to ensure she had died,” said the investigator.
The suspect’s father, 52-yearold Ram Saran, who is a driver with a private firm, returned home around 45 minutes to discover the crime. “Rajender’s father advised him to wait till midnight. They then carried the body on a scooter and dumped it in the nearby park,” said the investigator.
The girl’s body was found on Sunday, at around 6.30am. “Her legs were folded and tied to her hands. Her neck was also tied with two ropes,” alleged the girl’s aunt who had spotted the body.
Police said they had to scan footage from over 250 CCTV cameras to suspect Rajender. Rajender and Saran were arrested on Monday morning and later questioned. The police will seek their custody on Tuesday to gather more evidence against them and to check if they had targeted any more children
“Rajender was already charge sheeted in the previous case in which he had raped a 16-year-old girl in the same Nihal Vihar neighbourhood,” said Seju P Kuruvilla, deputy commissioner of police (outer).
The investigator said that the suspect may have killed the seven-year-old fearing identification. “The girl he had raped in 2016 had managed to escape, because of which he was caught. He did not want a repeat of that case, which could lead to his identification,” said the officer.
The DCP said that in the previous rape case, Rajender had initially claimed to be a minor and was granted bail by the juvenile justice board. “Later, documents proved that he was an adult. He managed to remain on bail, but has been charge sheeted and is under trial,” said DCP Kuruvilla.
Police said they are unclear of Saran’s role in the crime.
“While Rajender was the only one who raped the girl, investigators are yet to ascertain whether his father helped him kill the child,” said the DCP.
Meanwhile, the victim’s parents alleged that the police did not do enough to search for the girl, an allegation denied the DCP denied.
On Monday, the girl’s relatives and neighbours protested against the police in the neighbourhood. The family also met Delhi Commission for Women chief Swati Maliwal, who shot off a letter to the police, seeking their response to the allegations. The father-son duo was arrested on Monday morning. NEW DELHI : A four-year-old girl was raped by a 35-year-old sanitation worker in a public toilet in Naraina on February 6. Police said they arrested the man on Monday.
The girl lives in a slum in Naraina with her father, who works as a driver, and her step mother. Police said the girl’s father called the police on Monday and reported a suspected sexual assault with her daughter by some local resident. When a police team reached the spot they took the child to a hospital where a medical examination confirmed sexual assault.
Deputy commissioner of police (west) Monika Bhardwaj said a police team questioned the girl and based on the details given by her zeroed on Kailash. He is a sanitation worker in a public toilet, and is a native of Bahraich in Uttar Pradesh. He was arrested following a raid at his residence in Naraina.
“Kailash confessed to have raped the girl. He said he spotted her playing alone outside her house on February 6. He took her to the toilet block on the pretext of giving her sweets. He said he raped the girl and fled after leaving her near her house,” the DCP said. Police said that on Monday, the girl was admitted to a hospital for a medical observation.
Police said the girl’s stepmother told them that on the day of incident, she had found her crying near the toilet bock but did not suspect sexual assault. “On Sunday night when the girl told her about pain in her private parts, the family then called the police,” said an officer.