The cousin of a 17-year-old girl was arrested on Monday for allegedly murdering her and stuffing her body in a suitcase in north Delhi’s Burari, police said.
The 22-year-old accused allegedly planned the murder, bought the suitcase on Sunday morning and took the girl to his friend’s shop, where he strangled her, they said.
The accused, a resident of Mukundpur, north Delhi, was initially picked up by police on Monday afternoon following a tip-off that he was involved in a snatching case. However, his interrogation revealed that he was accused of killing his cousin, who was from Muzaffarpur in Bihar. The suitcase containing her body was also recovered from Burari, police said.
Also read: Girl’s body found in suitcase in Delhi’s Burari; relative arrested
Cousin allegedly planned murder after family opposed relationship
A senior police officer said the minor, a Class 11 student, lived with her parents in Muzaffarpur. “She was in a relationship with a cousin for a few years. Her family did not approve. She had fled with the cousin twice but returned home on both occasions,” the officer said.
{{/usCountry}}A senior police officer said the minor, a Class 11 student, lived with her parents in Muzaffarpur. “She was in a relationship with a cousin for a few years. Her family did not approve. She had fled with the cousin twice but returned home on both occasions,” the officer said.
{{/usCountry}}According to police, when the accused visited Muzaffarpur to attend Independence Day celebrations, the girl’s family asked him to help counsel her and take her to Delhi. He took her to her grandmother’s house in Azadpur, Delhi.
“On Sunday, the suspect noticed that she had called her cousin using his phone. This enraged him, and he decided to kill her,” the officer said.
Also read: Delhi man kills 17-year-old cousin, dumps body in suitcase; family ‘asked him’ to do it
Body stuffed in suitcase, dumped in Burari
Police said the accused bought a suitcase from a local market and took the girl to his friend’s shop in Burari, where, in a room next to the shop, he allegedly strangled her to death, stuffed the body into the suitcase and dumped it at an isolated place in Burari, police said.
The body was recovered late on Monday evening and has been sent for postmortem examination.