Murder cases filed in 4 bodies fished out of Delhi drain: Youth arrested, hunt for others
Mangalore Today News Network
New Delhi, Mar 10, 2020: The national capital witnessed violence for three consecutive days as groups of young men roamed parts of northeast Delhi with rods and sticks, setting ablaze homes and shops owned by Muslims.
Police have arrested a 20-year-old man in connection with the murder of four persons during the northeast Delhi riots, with officers saying the bodies were found in a drain in Gokulpuri. Police alleged that the man, Lokesh Kumar Solanki, and others murdered the four before dumping their bodies in the drain, Yahoo reported.
Additional PRO (Delhi Police) Anil Mittal said they had registered four murder cases on March 5 at Gokulpuri police station following the violence, which left 53 people dead.
“The cases were transferred to the special investigation team (SIT). Through manual and technical investigation, it emerged that a group of people were involved in these incidents. Based on evidence collected, Solanki was apprehended Sunday. He disclosed details of his other associates. Raids are on to nab the others,” he said. The arrest was made by Crime Branch’s SIT.
Police said three bodies were found on February 27 and one the next day, after locals saw a hand jutting out of the garbage piled up in the Gokulpuri drain.
Around 7 am on February 27, a patrolling team of around 50 personnel called local divers and told them to bring out the body.
“The divers took out the first body, which was decomposed. We suspected there could be more inside, so divers were sent in again. Half-an-hour later, another body was fished out. While the first one was found near the garbage, the second one was deep inside. In total, bodies of four persons, all residents of Mustafabad, were found in the drain,” said a senior officer.
violence in delhi mustafabad RAF passing next to the burned shops at Khajoori-Bhajanpura road in New Delhi on Tuesday.
Solanki, who is a undergraduate correspondence course student, was arrested after a team led by Inspector Vinay Tyagi received information about his alleged involvement. During the probe, they found a purported audio clip where he describes how he had killed the people on February 24-25.
“During questioning, police came to know that one of his associates, Sumit Chaudhary, may also have been involved but he was arrested on charges of rioting. Police have now moved an application for production warrant of Chaudhary, to verify all allegations, before making an arrest on murder charges,” said an officer, adding that prima facie it appears the four victims were beaten to death.
SC on delhi violence, sc on delhi riots, kapil misgra, kapil mishra hate speech, Forty-five people have died so far in the violence that broke out in Northeast Delhi last week. (Express photo)
Meanwhile, northeast district police have arrested four men on charges of rioting, robbery and vandalising a mosque in Ashok Nagar. “Using footage, we identified one Rahul (23) and arrested him. Two men, identified as Suraj (42) and Yogendra (45), have also been arrested, and a juvenile was apprehended for allegedly looting a footwear showroom. One man was arrested for firing in the area,” said an officer.
Two brothers, Arif and Abid Qureshi, have been arrested in connection with the murder of civil engineer Rahul Solanki in Dayalpur, police said.
Meanwhile, police said suspended AAP councillor Tahir Hussain’s brother Shah Alam and two of his associates has been arrested in connection with the riots.