Girl leaves home with school van driver, both found dead in river two days later

The girl had allegedly left home with the school van driver on December 24 but did not return, prompting her family to file a missing persons complaint

Silchar: Bodies of a 13-year-old girl who had been missing since December 24 and a school van driver were found in the Brahmaputra river in Guwahati on Friday, police said.

Two bodies recovered from the Brahmaputra River in Guwahati (Representative photo)

The girl had allegedly left home on December 24 evening and did not return, which prompted her family to file a missing complaint at the Jalukbari Police Station, an officer said.

The family accused the driver of kidnapping their daughter and alleged that he had been sending her inappropriate messages, which she disclosed to them about a week earlier. He reportedly stopped sending the messages after the family intervened.

“The family said that CCTV footage shows their daughter walking with the driver,” the officer added.

On Friday, locals discovered the bodies of a Class 8 student and a driver floating in the river and alerted the police.

A team from the forensic department and the police arrived at the scene and sent the bodies to Gauhati Medical College and Hospital (GMCH) for a postmortem examination.

“The two are believed to have died approximately 48 hours before their bodies were recovered. Family members identified them using their clothing and other personal belongings,” an investigating officer said.

Requesting a high-level inquiry, the family said, “We don’t know if he killed her or if a third person was involved. We demand justice.”

Police said that a case has been registered and further investigation is underway.