Malihabad rape bid, murder: Main accused killed in police encounter, brother arrested
The police also seized the e-auto-rickshaw from Dinesh’s possession that was allegedly used by the accused for abducting the woman on the pretext of ferrying her to Chinhat, where the deceased’s brother lives
LUCKNOW Two brothers with criminal background were behind the sensational murder and alleged rape bid on the 32-year-old woman, whose body was found dumped in a mango orchard in Malihabad on Wednesday. Nearly 72 hours after the crime, the Lucknow Police on Friday night gunned down the main accused, Ajay Kumar, 26, with a ₹1 lakh bounty and arrested his brother Dinesh Kumar, 35, of Dubagga, earlier in the day.
The police also seized the e-autorickshaw from Dinesh’s possession that was allegedly used by the accused for abducting the woman on the pretext of ferrying her to Chinhat, where the deceased’s brother lives.
“Ajay Kumar was injured in retaliatory firing by the police. He was taken to the KGMU, where doctors declared him dead,” said commissioner of police Amrendra K Sengar.
According to police sources, Dinesh informed the police about his brother’s whereabouts. Subsequently, crime branch in-charge Shivanand Mishra laid siege near Deva restaurant in Malihabad. Around 9:30pm, when Ajay was seen coming on a bike, cops surrounded him and tried to nab him, but Ajay opened fire and was shot dead in retaliatory firing by the police.
“Dinesh was held on Friday morning, on the basis of surveillance and information from informers. A joint team of Malihabad police, Crime Branch and Surveillance Cell (western zone) was formed to uncover this incident. The teams verified the footage of hundreds of CCTV cameras and the list of e-rickshaw holders between Alambagh and the site of incident, ”said Vishwajeet Srivastava, deputy commissioner of police (west).
According to the DCP, on the basis of interrogation, Sections 64(1) (rape) and 309(4) (robbery) of the BNS were added to the earlier FIR under murder charges.
“The original academic certificates of the deceased have been recovered from the possession of Dinesh,” said officials.
After taking her to a secluded place in Malihabad, both the accused first looted her, attempted to rape her and then choked her to death when she resisted, added the DCP.
As the woman repeatedly kept updating her brother and sister-in-law about her live location when the auto drivers took the wrong direction, it angered the accused Ajay . “He first snatched her phone and then smothered her so that she couldn’t make any noise,” the co-accused told police during interrogation.
