A seven-year-old girl’s body was discovered on Saturday at an under-construction mall in Ghaziabad after she was allegedly gang raped and killed late on Friday.
Her body was discovered after a stray dog led her family to the basement of the building.
A 22-year-old man and a 16 year old was arrested on charges of rape of a minor and murder.
Deputy commissioner of police Dhawal Jaiswal said, “We arrested a 22-year-old man, while the other suspect is a minor aged 16; he has been apprehended. The 16-year-old planned the crime, instigated the 22-year-old, and they killed her to hide their identities.”
According to the complaint from the child’s family, the family members and the residents began a search for the child after she went missing at around 7-8 pm on Friday. The family lived about 300 meters from the under-construction building, as they were labourers and hailed from Bihar.
Her parents she was playing by the construction area, and they were working. They initially thought that she would be with friends.
According to a report by HT, the girl’s mother said that they found the body at around 12:30 am on Saturday after a four-hour-long search.
“The guard told us that he heard a cry from the building, but he was unsure, as he only heard it once. It was dark, but we went inside to search. A stray dog was ‘accompanying’ us. Seconds later, it went towards the basement and stood still. We noticed the dog and followed it to take a look. The body was right there,” the mother added.
The father of the girl alleged that the child was raped and murdered.
“There were no clothes on her body, and there was bleeding from her head and face. It seemed that her hands and legs were also broken. She was raped and murdered,” the father said.
Bloodstains were found at the site where the body was found. The crime occurred on the third floor of the building. Out of fear that they would be found, they murdered the girl and threw her body from the floor. The body had fallen through the wiring before it was found in the basement.
CCTV footage recovered from the area shows the 7-year-old was lured with chips and cold drinks by the accused persons. The two accused entered the mall premises at around 7:40 pm on Friday. One of the accused was seen leaving at 11 pm, about 3 hours later.
A case has been registered against both under sections of murder, rape, and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.
