Hindustan Times (Noida)

5-yr-old raped before her murder, say cops

- Peeyush Khandelwal peeyush.khandelwal@htlive.com

GHAZIABAD: At least six teams of the Ghaziabad police are searching for the suspect responsibl­e for the abduction, rape and murder of a five-yearold girl in Sahibabad, police said on Saturday.

The girl went missing from outside her house around 2.30pm on Thursday and her body was recovered around Friday noon from a location near her house under the jurisdicti­on of the Sahibabad police station. Police added that the post-mortem findings have confirmed rape and the cause of death due to strangulat­ion.

Police said that the autopsy report has also indicated rape. The autopsy was conducted on Friday evening in Ghaziabad. Police initially registered a case of abduction when the girl went missing but later added murder and rape charges, besides adding provisions of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (Pocso) Act.

“The autopsy report received late on Friday night confirmed the presence of injuries in her private parts. The autopsy report also indicates strangulat­ion. When we discovered the body, the neck of the victim had a piece of cloth tied to it. It sug

gests that she was strangled. The time of death is suggested to be around 18 hours before the autopsy,” said Gyanendra Kumar Singh, superinten­dent of police (city 2). Police officers aware of the matter said that at least 30 people from the locality were rounded up for questionin­g while extensive electronic surveillan­ce and scanning of CCTV footage is also being taken up to identify the suspect. “We have come across an unidentifi­ed man who is seen in one of the CCTV footage and is not a resident of the locality,” he said.

The father of the girl said that the unidentifi­ed man seen in one of the CCTV footage is an outsider and was stalking a young woman who later told him about the matter.

“She said that the man was

following her. I want the police to investigat­e every possible angle to the case and even a search should be conducted locally to find out if my daughter was kept captive first and murdered later. The brutality with her suggests that there was involvemen­t of more than one person. The culprits should be arrested and their motive should be revealed,” the father added.

The girl went to play outside around 2.30pm on Thursday and went missing. A day later, her body was found without clothes on the lower portion, police added. “She returned from school and went out to play. I got her admitted to Class 1 this academic session,” the father said. The family moved to Ghaziabad about five years ago from Kannauj, police added.

 ?? SAKIB ALI ?? Cops inspect the area where the minor’s body was found.
SAKIB ALI Cops inspect the area where the minor’s body was found.

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