2008 Goa murder of British teen: Court acquits both the accused

PANAJI: Two local men accused of drugging, sexually abusing and leaving British teenage girl Scarlett Eden Keeling to die on Goa’s popular Anjuna beach in 2008 were on Friday let off by a children’s court here.

Goa Children’s Court judge Vandana Tendulkar acquitted Samson D’Souza and Placido Carvalho of all the charges in the eight-year-long high profile death case.

Carvalho and Samson had been charged with culpable homicide not amounting to murder, sexual abuse and drugging.

The verdict was announced in a jam packed court hall.

Scarlett’s mother Fiona Mackeown expressed shock at the verdict. “I am shocked. I was not expecting acquittal. I was expecting conviction. I will challenge the order,” Fiona told reporters outside the court hall here.

After her daughter’s body was found, Fiona had lived in Anjuna for a couple of weeks trying to piece together the evidence in the case. She flew down to Goa from Davon (United Kingdom) to be present in the court for the final verdict.

“It took a huge effort for me to even get the police to register a complaint [in the case],” she said recalling her struggle to get justice for her 15-year-old daughter.

She alleged she knew that the Goa police was not interested to prosecute the killers.

Scarlett Keeling: