After the body of a minor girl who went missing two days ago was found hidden in a bag in Gandhinagar district, Gujarat Police on Friday said they had arrested four suspects and one of them confessed to the murder, leading to his arrest. The police said that the arrested accused, 36 years old, is the victim’s neighbor.
A police statement issued on Friday said that the girl’s parents went out to work on November 12 and left their son and daughter at home.
By the time they returned, their daughter had disappeared, and they filed a complaint with the police. Soon, a team of about 40 police and internal guards began searching for the girl on the streets as well as through technical means and human intelligence.
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On the night of November 12, an additional 40 personnel were deployed to search for the girl. A drone was also deployed, but to no avail.
Nearly 36 hours later, on the night of November 13, police received information that the girl’s body had been found stuffed in a burlap bag, in an open space near her home. Senior police officers arrived at the scene.
After the body was identified, the nature of the investigation changed – from searching for the missing girl to searching for her killer.
The forensic laboratory deployed a fingerprinting team, and the police dog squad was also called in. Investigators from the Local Crime Branch (LCB) and Special Operations Group (SOG) have also been called in to investigate the case. The body has been sent for autopsy and Additional Superintendent of Police (ASP) Ayush Jain of Dahigam division said the autopsy results will ascertain whether the victim was sexually assaulted.
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The police arrested neighbors and suspicious persons and began interrogations. They have narrowed the list to four people, ASP Jain told The Indian Express on Friday.
Another police officer said that one of the suspects confessed to committing the crime.
The police statement said, “The accused kidnapped the complainant’s daughter, took her to his house, strangled her to death and dumped the body packed in a bag in an open area behind his house under a pile of scraps. He also joined the search for the girl. Finally, due to the large police presence and fear of being arrested, he placed the body behind one of his neighbors’ house where it was found.”
(Tags for translation)Gujarat news
