Man held for rape and murder after 4 weeks

LUCKNOW: A man was arrested on Sunday for the rape and murder of an eight-year-old girl whose body was found in the bushes near Kudiaghat in Thakurganj on October 28. The arrested man was her neighbour. He raped the girl after taking her to a secluded place and strangled her when she resisted and shouted for help.

The accused, Mohd Harun, 30 was the key suspect since the beginning as he was missing after the incident. The city police team arrested him from his relative’s place in Bahraich after a marathon effort of 29 days and brought him to Lucknow.

Additional superintendent of police (ASP) West Vikas Chandra Tripathi said Harun lived on rent in the house of one Mohd Hafiz in Mohinipurwa locality. The vic- tim girl and her family also lived in the same locality. Harun had strained relations with his wife following which he stayed alone.

Tripathi said the accused revealed during interrogation that he was walking outside his room on the night of September 27 when he spotted the girl playing alone outside her house. He lured the girl to purchase some eatables and took her to a secluded place alongside Bandha road on Kudiaghat. He dragged the girl into bushes and raped her, Tripathi said. He said the accused confessed he strangled the girl fearing police action when she started crying and shouting for help. Then he returned to his room leaving the body in the bushes and left Lucknow, he added.

The ASP said Harun first visited his native place in Hargaon, Sitapur and then moved to Delhi the very next day, fearing that police could reach him anytime. He said the accused stayed at different locations in Delhi and Haryana for a few weeks and later approached his relative in Bahraich to provide him shelter.