Man kills 9-year-old, sets body on fire in Maidan Garhi, arrested

The suspect planned and executed the child’s kidnapping and murder after getting inspiration from a television crime show, the police said adding that the woman had turned down his proposal recently because she said she already had a child.

A 22-year-old man allegedly kidnapped and murdered a nine-year-old and then threw the child’s body in a pond in south Delhi’s Maidan Garhi — all in an attempt to marry his childhood friend, police said on Friday after cracking the case.

The suspect planned and executed the child’s kidnapping and murder after getting inspiration from a television crime show, the police said adding that the woman had turned down his proposal recently because she said she already had a child.

Police said the child was kidnapped and strangled to death on November 28. The body was recovered from a muddy pond on Thursday (December 24), after a passerby spotted it and informed the police.

The boy’s body was found stuffed in a plastic bag. His clothes were hidden between stones near the pond. The body as well as the clothes were semi-charred. The suspect, identified only by his single name Bittu, had tried to set them on fire to ensure his identity was never established, said deputy commissioner of police (south) Atul Kumar Thakur.

“After strangling the child, Bittu had thrown the body in the muddy pond in a forested area in Maidan Garhi, went back home, and joined the child’s family in searching for him. He visited the crime scene the next day and noticed that the child’s body was visible in the pond,” said DCP Thakur.

Bittu, the DCP said, then pulled out the body, took it inside a forested area and hid it there. He then purchased some petrol and went back to the place where the body was hidden. Bittu then allegedly poured the petrol on the body and sent it on fire. But due to the wet clothes, the body did not burn, said Thakur.

“Bittu again hid the body in the forested area and returned home. He went there the next day, removed the clothes and shoes from the body, and stuffed it in a plastic bag. He threw the bag in the pond to make sure the body is not visible again,” added Thakur.

Police said that the involvement of Bittu in the child’s kidnapping and murder emerged after the body was discovered on Thursday and technical surveillance of cellphones of people known to the boy showed his presence near the crime scene on the day the kidnapping happened.

“We interrogated Bittu. Initially, he tried to mislead us. But when confronted with technical evidence, he confessed,” said a senior police officer.

During the interrogation, the officer said, Bittu revealed that he liked the child’s mother and wanted to marry her. However, her family married her to someone else. A couple of years ago, the woman separated from her husband because of a marital discord. She then began living with her parents, the officer said.

“Bittu then again started getting close to the woman. He frequented her home and got friendly with her and her son as well. Some days ago, he proposed to the woman, but was turned down by the woman who cited her son as a reason. Bittu then hatched the murder plan,” said the officer.

On November 28, Bittu saw the boy outside his home in Bhati Mines and asked him to accompany him to a nearby forest to eat berries. They boarded a Gramin Sewa vehicle and reached Maidan Garhi. From there, they went to a forested area, where Bittu allegedly strangled the child with a towel and threw the body in the pond, said DCP Thakur.