Delhi Teen Gangraped and Killed; Four Held, Three of Them Minors
A 17-year-old girl was allegedly gangraped and stabbed to death in Delhi; four suspects, including three minors, have been apprehended.
Four people, three of them minors, have been apprehended in connection with the alleged gangrape and murder of a 17-year-old girl in Delhi, police said. The victim's decomposed body was recovered on September 13 from an open field near Jaipal Rana's field in the Swaroop Nagar area on Kushak Road in Northwest Delhi, days after the crime.
According to police, the body had decomposed so extensively that its gender could not be determined at first sight. Parts of the remains had been eaten by stray dogs, and one hand was found severed from the body.
Investigators said the girl and the accused were known to each other. She was travelling with them in a tempo when the crime took place. The group is alleged to have consumed alcohol inside the vehicle before the girl was sexually assaulted, stabbed to death and her body dumped.
The family had not reported her missing, police said, adding that they told investigators she would often leave home and return after a few days.
A case has been registered under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act. With no apparent eyewitness and the perpetrators initially unidentified, police teams examined footage from more than 50 CCTV cameras covering the area and adjoining routes.
A tempo was spotted moving near the scene around the relevant time. Its registration number was unclear because of darkness, prompting investigators to track its movement across multiple camera locations. A night-long search on the intervening night of September 15 and 16 led to the vehicle being traced and its driver questioned.
The probe then led to the apprehension of four people, including three juveniles. The adult accused has been identified as Shivam, also known as Sudama and Chuchu, a resident of Khadda Colony. The three juveniles are aged 16 and 17.
Two knives allegedly used in the crime, clothes said to have been worn by the accused and the tempo have been recovered. Police said further investigation is underway to establish the sequence of events, determine the individual roles of those apprehended and verify forensic and technical evidence.