Ghaziabad: 19-yr-old abducts, rapes, kills minor; held

After the girl’s family realised that she is missing, they started the search along with some locals. Notably, the accused, Raju, also joined the search operation

The Ghaziabad Police said they have arrested a 19-year-old bus conductor from the Kaushambi ISBT on Saturday for allegedly abducting, raping, and murdering a five-year-old girl earlier this week.

The accused purportedly accepted his involvement in the crime and also indicated the spot where the body of the girl was dumped. The body was recovered from the drain, officials said. (Representational image)

According to police, the accused, Noor Alam alias Raju, is originally from Madhepura in Bihar. At around 10.30pm on January 15, Raju spotted the girl outside her house in Sahibabad, where the bus used in the crime is usually parked.

“During the night, he took the girl to his bus, where he generally sleeps during the night. Then, he raped the girl, and she fell unconscious. In order to avoid getting caught and to hide his identity, he strangled her to death and bundled her body in a gunny bag. He then dumped the bag in a drain about 200 metres away in the industrial area,” Rajneesh Upadhyaya, ACP of the Sahibabad circle, said.

After the girl’s family realised that she is missing, they started the search along with some locals. Notably, Raju also joined the search operation. On the basis of the family’s complaint, an FIR was registered under Section 137 (2) (kidnapping) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) on January 16.

The man was seen walking alongside the girl in a CCTV footage, police said.

“His identity was traced, and teams went out for a search. Upon information from local informers, the man was traced near ISBT Kaushambi and was trying to flee in a bus. When the team reached the spot and asked him to surrender, he ran towards a vacant plot behind the ISBT and opened fire at the team with a country-made weapon,” the ACP added.

Upadhyaya said that the accused purportedly accepted his involvement in the crime and also indicated the spot where the body of the girl was dumped. The body was recovered from the drain, officials said.

The police said that sections of rape, murder, and destruction of evidence, besides the provisions of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, were added to the case. Police said the autopsy will be conducted on Sunday.