10-yr-old boy beaten to death on suspicion of mobile theft in Bihar

The crime occurred on Saturday morning. The police are conducting raids to find others who may be involved in the murder

A 10-year-old boy was allegedly beaten to death by villagers on suspicion of stealing a mobile phone in Bihar’s Supual town past Saturday, said the police. Three accused have been arrested, they said.

Representational Image.

The boy’s body was recovered on Sunday morning from a pond in the district.

The boy’s grandfather told the police that the incident took place when he was visiting a relative while his daughter-in-law (mother of the deceased) went to collect her ration card around 11am on Saturday. “He was alone at home. When his mother returned, he was not at home. After a few hours, she informed me that he was still not back,” he added.

The family failed to trace the boy. “We also called a relative who helped them look for the boy, but to no avail,” he added.

Later, police said, another boy of the same village was returning home after answering nature’s call on Sunday morning. “He saw the victim’s body submerged in water and one of the accused was allegedly there. The accused allegedly threatened the boy from telling anyone. The boy noticed that the clothes of the accused were drenched. The villagers suspect that he was involved in the killing of the boy,” said the police.

The family filed a complaint and the police took the accused into custody. The accused have reportedly confessed to their crime.

Supual Town police station SHO Dinanath Mandal said that the police arrested a mother-son duo and another man. “During investigation, it came to light that they killed the boy and buried his body in their house. Later, they threw it in the pond late in the night. The motive behind the murder appears to be suspicion of mobile phone theft. We are conducting raids to trace others involved in the crime,” he added.