Pune, May 6 (PTI) Police probing the alleged rape and murder of a four-year-old girl at Nasrapur in Maharashtra’s Pune district recreated the crime scene by taking the 65-year-old accused to the site where the incident took place, officials said.
The reconstruction of the crime scene was conducted on Tuesday night under heavy deployment of police to prevent any law-and-order situation.
The girl was allegedly sexually assaulted and murdered by the accused at Narsapur in Bhor tehsil of Pune on May 1, sparking massive outrage and protests. The accused was subsequently arrested.
A senior official from the Pune Rural Police said the accused led investigators to the cattle shed and demonstrated how the crime unfolded.
“As part of the reconstruction of events, the accused showed the crime scene where he allegedly raped the victim and subsequently killed her by stuffing a cloth into her mouth to gag her,” he said.
The official added that sufficient police force was deployed to escort the accused to the village safely.
“All technical and forensic evidence is currently being analysed to ensure a watertight case. Statements from key witnesses are also being recorded,” he said.
The autopsy report previously confirmed asphyxia as the cause of death.
Preliminary findings suggest the accused gagged the child with a cloth, leading to fatal suffocation.
A Special Investigation Team (SIT) has been formed to probe the case.
The accused, a labourer by profession, has a criminal record involving sexual offenses. He was previously arrested for molestation cases in 1998 and 2015, though he was acquitted in both of them.
In the current case, police allege that he lured the minor girl with the promise of food before taking her to the secluded cattle enclosure.
Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Sunday assured that the government will push for a death penalty for the accused and said the state will fast-track the trial to ensure justice in “record time”.
The family of the accused claimed to have snapped ties with him years ago and called for the most stringent punishment possible. Police said the statements of the family members of the accused will be recorded as part of the investigation.
The incident sparked massive outrage in the Bhor region. Last week, hundreds of villagers gathered outside the local police outpost, demanding justice and staged a blockade on the Mumbai-Bengaluru Highway. PTI SPK COR NP
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