Teen who raped, killed 3-yr-old is not a minor; committed murder to take revenge against deceased boy’s father: police

The suspect killed the child, whose charred body and severed head were found in a forested area in Meerut, to take revenge on the boy’s father, who had publicly scolded and humiliated him a few days ago, police officers said

New Delhi The young man who was arrested on Tuesday for allegedly kidnapping, raping and murdering a 3-year-old boy in East Delhi’s Chitra Vihar, is actually an adult and not 16 years old, as he and his family members claimed earlier, police said on Wednesday.

Police said they have recovered the suspect’s Aadhaar card from his house, which confirmed that he is more than 18 years old. The suspect has been arrested and booked for kidnapping, murder and destruction of evidence, police officers said.

The suspect killed the child, whose charred body and severed head were found in a forested area in Meerut, to take revenge on the boy’s father, who had publicly scolded and humiliated him a few days ago, police officers said on Wednesday.

He executed the crime after being inspired by crime shows that he often watched on the TV and online, police officers said.

Police said they have recovered the suspect’s Aadhaar card from his house, which confirmed that he is more than 18 years old. The suspect has been arrested and booked for kidnapping, murder and destruction of evidence, police officers said.

The suspect has been misleading investigators with contradictory statements about why he committed the crime, police said. Initially, he said the child fell unconscious after he raped him, so he panicked and killed him, police said. However, he later said he killed the child as part of his revenge plan, police said.

The suspect said that the deceased child’s father often gave him money to procure liquor and narcotic substances for himself, police said. A few days ago, the man caught him smoking the substance he had sent him to fetch, and publicly scolded him and demanded his money back, police said. He also complained to the suspect’s mother, who hit him for his act of smoking, police said.

“The suspect was enraged and decided to take revenge for his humiliation. He decided to kill the three-year-old child,” said the investigator who asked not to be named.

On November 30 at 4 pm, the suspect kidnapped the child while he was playing outside his house, police said. He lured him to a nearby tea shop where he gave him tea and biscuits, police said. Then, he left with him on the pretext of taking him for a walk, police said. The suspect went to Anand Vihar and boarded a bus for Meerut, where one of his relatives resides, police said. He deboarded the bus and took the child to a forested area near a village in Meerut, police said.

“The suspect revealed that he raped the child and strangled him. He wrapped the body in a blanket that he was carrying and set it ablaze to ensure that his crime remained undetected. He left the spot but did not return home or go to his relatives. The suspect worked and lived in a dhaba in Meerut. After six days, he thought it was safe to return so he went to his uncle’s home in Jagatpuri, from where we arrested him on Tuesday morning,” the officer added.

While the police were interrogating the suspect, a farmer spotted the charred body of the child and found some stray animals eating a severed head some distance away, and informed the police station. The police removed the body and shifted it to a government mortuary. The child’s parents identified his by his clothes, police said. On Wednesday, the body was handed over to the family after the autopsy.

Tension prevailed in Chitra Vihar for the second day as neighbours blame the police for the child’s death. Some residents said the police knew from the beginning of the case who the kidnapper was but did not pursue the case seriously. The woman at whose shop the suspect had taken the child for tea and biscuits had confirmed that the child was last seen with him, and the suspect was also missing, said Ram Singh, a local resident.

“On December 3, when police officers asked a girl known to the suspect about him, she threatened that she would ask him to kill the child with a knife if they troubled her. It meant that the girl knew where the suspect and the child were. However, the police did not take her threats seriously. Had they inquired further, the child would have been found alive,” added Singh.

Deputy commissioner of police (east) Amrutha Guguloth said, “We knew who the suspect was and made efforts to safely rescue the child. However, despite our raids, the suspect could not be found. He was not using a cellphone. The suspect had killed the child a day after the kidnapping.”

On Tuesday evening, soon after information about the child’s murder reached his family, scores of people, including family members and neighbours, turned violent, surrounded the house of the suspect and tried to attack his family members with stones and sticks. They also blocked the main Vikas Marg near the Preet Vihar metro station, demanding justice and action against police officers. The agitated crowd also blocked vehicular movement and resorted to stone pelting.

Although the situation was brought under control, at least 50 police officers were deployed in the neighbourhood throughout Tuesday and Wednesday to maintain order.