4 held in Keonjhar for minor's gang rape, murder
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Keonjhar/Bhubaneswar: Four men were arrested on Thursday for the alleged gang rape and murder of a 17-year-old Plus II student in Keonjhar district, two days after her body was found hanging from a tree.
"Based on the complaint of the deceased girl's father and prima facie evidence, we arrested all the four accused on charges of gang rape and murder," SP Nitin Kusalkar said.
The incident comes days after the gang rape of a college student on Gopalpur beach in Ganjam district drew widespread condemnation with CM Mohan Charan Majhi calling for strict action against the perpetrators.
Police have collected DNA samples from the suspects for profiling and comparison with the deceased's samples, Kusalkar said.
Police sources said one of the accused, aged 19, was in a relationship with the minor for about a month.
"The girl's father found her body hanging from a tree behind their residence on Tuesday morning. In his FIR, he identified the 19-year-old as the primary accused, who allegedly committed the assault with three accomplices aged 19, 27 and 42. All are residents of Keonjhar district," the SP added.
Police sources said the father, in his complaint, claimed the accused murdered her and made it look like a suicide by hanging her body.
"We are awaiting the post-mortem report that will ascertain the exact cause of death," Kusalkar said.
Another police officer said while the primary accused had sexually abused the victim, the other three suspects aided in the offence. "All three accomplices would face gang-rape charges under the new criminal laws, even if they had not sexually assaulted her," the officer said.
On Thursday, separate teams of BJD and Congress members visited the girl's village and met her family members.
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