Police: man, 25, accused of raping minor killed in exchange of fire

On being asked to stop, the suspects opened fire and injured two head-constables. In police’s retaliatory fire, the 25-year-old sustained gunshot

Ghaziabad: A 25-year-old man, who allegedly raped and murdered his four-year-old niece on April 11 and placed the body under parked car on the roadside in Shalimar Garden, was shot dead in a late-night exchange of fire with Ghaziabad police, officials said.

An FIR in the case was registered at Tila Morh police station on April 12 under BNS sections for murder, destroying evidence, rape, and provisions of the Pocso Act against him. (HT Photo)

“Upon a specific information, our teams learnt that he along with his accomplices was near Banthla, Loni on a bike. On being asked to stop, the suspects opened fire and injured two head-constables. In police’s retaliatory fire, the 25-year-old sustained gunshot. He was rushed to a hospital where he was declared dead. His accomplices, however, fled the scene,” ACP (Shalimar Garden) Atul Kumar Singh, told HT.

Dhawal Jaiswal, DCP of city zone, said that six shots were fired by the police during retaliation.

“… Police have a sequence of CCTV footage and forensic evidence against the deceased suspect,” he told HT.

Police identified the suspect as a man, originally from Muzaffarnagar, who arrived in Ghaziabad about five months ago. Living in the same locality, he allegedly took the girl to his house in the afternoon of April 11.

Officials said that during investigation, the forensics and the field units of the police also recovered vital evidence from the suspect’s house, including the girl’s bangles, blood-stained clothes and other material. “Police teams also gathered CCTV footages where he was seen carrying the body of the girl and fleeing after hiding in below a parked car in Shalimar Garden,” the ACP added.

An FIR in the case was registered at Tila Morh police station on April 12 under BNS sections for murder, destroying evidence, rape, and provisions of the Pocso Act against him.