Stalker stabs teen girl, then sets off LPG blast in suspected suicide in Delhi

The suspect worked as a delivery executive for an e-commerce portal and lived with his mother, who was away from home when he set off the blast, police said.

A 24-year-old man, a suspected stalker, stabbed a girl aged around 16-17 years multiple times, leaving her critically injured, and then allegedly committed suicide by setting off an LPG cylinder blast in Shahdara on Friday evening, police said. The girl is critically injured and is undergoing treatment, they said.

Police said the suspect and the victim were neighbours living in Old Seemapuri (PTI/Representative)

Police said the suspect and the victim were neighbours living in Old Seemapuri and that the man had been harassing her for some time, as per a preliminary investigation.

A senior police officer, who did not wish to be named, said, “Since both of them can’t be reached for a statement at the moment, we spoke to families and neighbours and found they were friends. The families also knew each other. As per our enquiry, it looks like either the man proposed to her and was rejected or that they were in a relationship and had a dispute.”

The suspect worked as a delivery executive for an e-commerce portal and lived with his mother, who was away from home when he set off the blast, police said.

Deputy commissioner of police (Shahdara) Rajendra Prasad Meena said, “The girl, whose age is being verified, has sustained multiple stab injuries. We found that a man attacked her after fighting with her. She was shifted to GTB Hospital and admitted for further treatment; doctors have declared her unfit for statement. A case of attempted murder was lodged and we spoke to the PCR caller.”

The woman sustained more than three to four stab wounds in the incident that took place around 5.30pm, police said. Around 6.20pm, a blast was reported inside a house in C Block in Seemapuri, and a charred boy was recovered.

“The cause of death is being investigated. An autopsy report is awaited. The man was identified and it was found that he had attacked the girl sometime back. He then returned home. We found the doors were shut. His body was found near the kitchen with a lighter. It’s suspected that he left the LPG cylinder open and started the fire with the lighter. However, we are still looking at the death from all angles,” said another police officer.

The DCP said the man’s body was shifted to GTB Hospital and that the parents of both parties were being questioned.