A 40-year-old man was arrested on Friday for allegedly kidnapping, sodomising and strangulating a six-year-old boy to death on August 11.
The accused was tracked down with the help of a sniffer dog, who was able to take the police to the place where the accused had been working before he went missing. Ram Niwas, a labourer and a native of Uttar Pradesh, was ultimately arrested from Mandoli.
Tracking dog
The incident came to light after the boy’s father, a tea-stall owner, approached the police informing them that his son had been missing since 6.30 p.m. on August 11.
A case of kidnapping was registered at the police station on August 12.
The police quickly found the body of the boy in a nursery, located between his home and his father’s shop.
“Our tracking dog Vinesh was called in. After he sniffed around, he took us to a nearby construction site in Milan Garden where Ram had been working,” said Deputy Commissioner of Police (north-east) Ajit Kumar Singla.
Police teams tracked down and arrested the accused on Friday with the help of a tip-off.
During interrogation, Ram told the police that he is an alcoholic and knew the boy as the victim used to bring him tea. “He told us he was friends with the boy’s uncle and often met the victim, who used to work at the tea stall with his father,” said Mr. Singla.
Similar offence
On August 11, the accused took the boy to the construction site and sodomised him. He then strangulated the boy as the victim allegedly told him he would tell his father, the police said.
“Ram is also involved in a case of kidnapping and murder from 2009 for which he was released from jail in 2011,” said the officer.