Days after the body of a seven-year-old girl was found in a trunk floating in a canal in northeast Delhi’s Bhajanpura, Delhi Police has identified the accused and detained his family members to ascertain their role. The accused is absconding, but a hunt is on to nab him, police said. The case came to light when the girl’s parents filed a missing report on June 21. The family told police that the girl had gone to her aunt’s house in New Usmanpur, and went missing while returning. “After looking for the girl for a couple of hours, the family approached police,” said a senior police officer. On June 28, a passersby crossing a canal saw a trunk and found it suspicious. When it was opened, the girl’s body was found, her hands and limbs tied. “Her body was decomposed but after checking missing records and calling her parents, the girl was identified,” the officer said. During investigation, police recovered a pink salwar-kameez from the trunk and started showing the clothing to locals. “Police also started scanning CCTVs from the areas and found footage wherein the victim was seen heading home. But she disappeared beyond a point, and police started door-to-door verification in the area,” police said. Sources said locals informed police that the suit belonged to the wife of a man who lived on the same street from where the girl had gone missing. “A raid was conducted at their home, but the accused managed to escape,” police sources said. Police then started questioning his family members after detaining them. After sustained questioning, the mother of the accused broke down and admitted her son’s involvement, a police officer claimed. “She told police that her son and his wife separated eight months ago. The girl was kidnapped by him when no one else was home,” police sources said, adding that he killed the girl and kept her body in his room. Police sources said the family sensed a foul smell from his room. “They found the body and decided to approach police, but the accused pleaded with them not to. They covered the body with a blanket, and when it started smelling, put some talcum powder on it. They later decided to dispose of the body and the accused dumped it 400 metres from the home,” sources said.
