‘I made a mistake, did it for money’: What Kailash Hills rape and murder accused told court

Rahul Kumar Meena, the accused, has been remanded to four days in police custody by Saket courts.

A Delhi court on Thursday said the allegations against the 23-year-old former household employee who allegedly raped and strangled a woman in south Delhi’s Kailash Hills disclosed an “exceptionally serious” and “brutal crime” involving sexual assault and murder.

The primary suspect in the Kailash Hills murder case at Saket Court on Thursday. (ANI)

The observations were made by judicial magistrate first class Deepika Thakran of Saket courts while remanding accused Rahul Kumar Meena to four days in police custody.

“The allegations, as emerging from the record placed before this court, disclose commission of an exceptionally serious and brutal crime involving sexual assault upon the victim and her subsequent murder by strangulation, followed by robbery and escaping the place of incident,” the court order stated.

When orally questioned by the court as to why he committed the crime, the accused, brought to court with his face covered, said, “Galti hogayi. Maine paise ke liye kiya. Fingerprint chahiye tha locker kholne ke liye (I made a mistake. I did it for money. I needed her fingerprint to open the locker).”

To be sure, the court clarified that his statement would not be treated as a formal confession.

The court also noted that a thorough interrogation of the accused at this stage was imperative. Custody was required to “unearth the complete facts” and “the whole modus operandi.” It also noted that the victim’s stolen mobile phone needed to be recovered, along with jewellery and cash allegedly stolen by the accused.

“…for recreating the route and spot of incident and for the detailed medical examination of the accused i.e. DNA profiling, nail clipping, etc the court deems it appropriate to allow the instant application for the grant of four days of police custody of the accused,” the order read.

In a remand plea, police told the court that apart from several stolen articles yet to be recovered, several co-associates also need to be identified, and Meena must be taken to various places for investigation.

Additional public prosecutor Akashmani Tripathi informed the court that a day before the present incident, the accused was involved in a similar offence in Alwar, Rajasthan.

The accused, represented by a legal aid counsel, opposed the custody, calling it “unnecessary.”

The court also noted that Meena had sustained injuries during the incident and ordered police to carry out a fresh medical examination, producing the report after the custody period ends.

The victim, an IIT graduate preparing for the civil services examination, was found by her parents when they returned from the gym around 8 a.m. Wednesday. Her father is a civil servant, and her mother is a dentist.

Police said the accused gained entry by exploiting a narrow window when her parents had stepped out as part of their daily routine. Meena was apprehended in the evening from a hotel in Dwarka and has been booked under BNS sections pertaining to rape, murder, and robbery.