A 30-year-old man, prime suspect in the rape and murder of a six-year-old tribal girl in Hyderabad on September 9, was found dead on the railway tracks at Pamunuru village in Telangana’s Warangal district, about 120km from the state capital earlier in the day, police said on Thursday.
The man’s mutilated body was found on the railway tracks and was identified by his tattoos which the police had widely publicised while looking for him.
Police are yet to confirm if the man died by suicide, murder or is a case of accident on the railway tracks. “Further investigation is on,” an official, who asked not to be named, said.
“Just been informed by @TelanganaDGP garu that the beast who has raped the child has been traced and found dead on a railway track at Station Ghanpur,” Telangana state IT minister KT Rama Rao tweeted.
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The Hyderabad Police had formed nine teams to search for the man who had been missing after the crime came to light. They also circulated images of tattoos on both his hands which read: “Mounika”.
On Wednesday, Hyderabad police commissioner Anjani Kumar also appealed to the people for information on the accused, announcing a cash reward of Rs10 lakh for information leading to the suspect’s arrest.
{{/usCountry}}On Wednesday, Hyderabad police commissioner Anjani Kumar also appealed to the people for information on the accused, announcing a cash reward of Rs10 lakh for information leading to the suspect’s arrest.
{{/usCountry}}According to the police, the girl belonged to a tribal family. On September 9, hours after her parents reported that the child was missing, her body was found in the house of her neighbour, the 30-year-old, whom police said was the main suspect.
A post-mortem report revealed that the child was raped and strangled to death. A case of murder and rape was filed apart from charges under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, 2012.
Meanwhile, political parties have come out in support of the child’s family. On Wednesday, state home minister Md Mahmood Ali and minister for women and child welfare Satyavathi Rathod called on them and extended an ex-gratia of Rs20 lakh. They also promised a two-bedroom house to the family.