Police suspect accused behind unsolved rapes, send DNA for test

Rana (30), an autorickshaw driver, was arrested on Tuesday for allegedly forcing a five-year-old girl into his autorickshaw near her Andheri residence, taking her to a deserted spot in Aarey Colony, raping her and then abandoning her. The victim was found by a patrolling policeman, who then took her to the police station. On Wednesday, the DNA samples were sent for forensic tests.

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“We have asked for a comparison of Rana’s DNA samples with samples taken from the bodies of the victims of the Nehru Nagar and the Colaba-Cuffe Parade cases. A second set of DNA samples has also been sent separately for comparison in the case in which Rana was arrested on Tuesday,” said a Crime Branch officer.

From December 2011 to April 2012, three minor girls went missing from near their residences in the Colaba-Cuffe Parade area and were later found raped and murdered. The police have questioned over 200 suspects in the case. Similarly, in 2010, three minor girls went missing from their residences in Nehru Nagar, Kurla, and were later found raped and murdered in the same locality.

The officer added, “There is also an unsolved case in Meghwadi where the victim, a minor, was taken to Aarey Colony and raped. We are probing the possibility of Rana’s involvement in that case as well.”

Rana was produced in court on Wednesday and remanded in police custody till March 18. The crime branch has now taken over the investigation of the case from the Sahar police.

Meanwhile, an officer in the investigating team said one of the significant clues that established the identity of Rana as the accused were the slippers worn by him, which were now part of the police’s evidence.

“The victim was unable to describe Rana’s physical attributes due to her age, but kept drawing vague comparisons between Rana and her own father. On being asked further, she told us that the man who assaulted her was wearing plastic chappals similar to those worn by her father. When, after making inquires with scores of autorickshaw drivers, we finally picked up Rana, we saw that he was wearing plastic chappals, which immediately heightened our suspicion. After sustained interrogation, he finally confessed to the crime,” said the officer.

Rana, during preliminary questioning, has also allegedly told the police that he forced himself on the victim in the backseat of his autorickshaw. The police have seized the autorickshaw and it will soon be subjected to examination by a team of forensic experts who will look for any forensic evidence.

gautam.mengle@expressindia.com