An eight-year-old girl was raped and brutally murdered in the Central Delhi area. The incident sent shock waves in the area. The 36-years-old culprit, Rizwan @ Badshah, a resident of Chandni Mahal area, was tracked down by the police and recovered the weapon used in the crime.

The girl, who went missing in the intervening night of August 4-5, was found murdered in the Yamuna Khadar area located in the IP Estate on August 18. The accused had not only slit the throat of the innocent victim but also mutilated her face beyond recognition ostensibly to conceal her identity.

The fact that it took almost 13 days to trace the girl reflects on the working of the Daryaganj police Station under whose jurisdiction the crime had taken place.

Meanwhile, confessing to the crime, the accused disclosed that he had developed an intimacy with the deceased’s mother.  As the child caught them in a compromising position he decided to eliminate her to maintain confidentiality over their illicit relations.

Confirming the incident, Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Central Delhi Shweta Chauhan said, “On the intervening night of August 4 and a complainant reported that he was sleeping at his home with his wife and four children. At around 4 am, he found that one of his daughters was missing. He had no clue where she had gone.”

On the basis of the complaint, a case was registered at the Daryaganj police station under the relevant section and a hunt was launched to trace out the missing girl,” she added.

Even as the search was on, information about a girl’s dead body lying in the Yamuna Khadar area was received. On reaching the spot, a police team found sharp injury marks on the throat and face of the deceased. After the identification of the body by her family, section 302 IPC and POCSO Act was added to the case accordingly and an investigation was initiated into the rape and murder.

The DCP further said, “In view of the sensitivity of the case, a massive hunt was launched for the accused with 50 police personnel divided in different teams. The dedicated efforts of the teams bore fruit and eventually, the police succeeded in nabbing the accused, Rizwan, who confessed to the crime during interrogation.”

During interrogation, the accused stated that he belongs to Bihar and is illiterate. He works as a butcher in the Turkman Gate area of the old city. He further disclosed that he is a drug addict and unmarried. He had developed intimacy with the mother of the victim and befriended the victim.

According to him, since the victim saw him in a compromising position with her mother, he decided to remove her from his way. Hence, he kidnapped her from her Jhuggi at night while other members of her family were asleep. He took her to a secluded place in the adjoining forest area of Yamuna Khadar where he raped her before slitting her throat and mutilating her face.