On Friday in Ghaziabad, a 27-year-old maternal uncle allegedly molested and murdered a seven-year-old girl within their extended family, according to the police. The suspect has been arrested, and it is reported that he then threw her body from his terrace, as stated on Saturday.
Search and Discovery of the Missing Girl
On Friday night, the incident occurred, and the minor’s body was recovered around 2 a.m. on Saturday, as confirmed by the police.
The girl, who hailed from Sahibabad, had come to stay with her maternal grandparents in Kaila Bhatta, accompanied by her mother. She had been residing in Kaila Bhatta for the past 15 days. Notably, the suspect’s residence is situated adjacent to her grandparents’.
According to another maternal uncle of the girl, she went missing at approximately 10:30 p.m. on Friday. Despite an extensive search effort, they were unable to locate her.
Furthermore, The uncle shared that they had thoroughly searched the entire house and the surrounding areas but were regretfully unable to find any trace of the girl. He mentioned that some children in the neighborhood had pointed out that a relative living in the adjoining house had called her over. Moreover, When they questioned this relative, he attempted to evade their inquiries. Additionally, he added that the suspect and their house had a common terrace on the second floor.
Confession and Arrest of the Maternal Uncle Suspect
At around 2 a.m., they resumed searching the house, during which they found her in an unconscious state on the terrace of the second floor. She was immediately rushed to a nearby private hospital, where the doctors declared her dead upon arrival. It was noted that the police were promptly informed of the situation. Furthermore, Police initiated an investigation, during which they apprehended five suspects for questioning, based on preliminary information.
Moreover, One of the five suspects was a maternal uncle of the girl. He eventually broke down and confessed to having abused the child. When she resisted and threatened to disclose the ordeal to her family, he strangled her. Upon realizing that a search was underway, he threw the girl from his house terrace to the one at her maternal grandparent’s residence, where she was discovered by her family,” disclosed Nipun Agarwal, DCP.
The suspect, as per the police, is a married man with children, but his wife does not live with him due to marital discord.
Legal Action and Evidence in the Case of the Tragic Incident
An FIR was registered against the suspect under sections 302 (murder), 201 (destruction of evidence), 354 (molestation) of the Indian Penal Code, and the provisions of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (Pocso), based on the complaint filed by the girl’s father. This FIR was lodged at Kotwali police station.
The DCP further added that during the investigation, the girl’s slippers were found in the suspect’s room, along with a towel that may contain biological evidence. The DCP explained that the girl’s throat bore a deep injury mark, which appeared to have been inflicted by nails. He added that the suspect claimed to have enticed the girl into his room by offering her some dry fruits. While speaking to HT on Saturday, ACP Nimish Patil said that the autopsy revealed that she died of throttling (choking of throat with hands). According to ACP, the suspect decided to dispose of the girl’s body on the adjacent terrace after throttling her. He expressed that the suspect’s primary concern was the fear of getting into trouble if the body were to be discovered in his room.