Delhi cops to seek adult trial for 3 juveniles in teen's gang-rape, murder; chargesheet in a week

The charge-sheet in the gang-rape and murder case of the 16-year-old girl – whose mutilated body was found in an open field in Delhi’s Swaroop on Sunday, September 13, will be filed within a week, two police officers said on Saturday.

An application in the concerned Delhi court will also be moved, requesting that the three alleged juvenile accused, apprehended in the case along with their 19-year-old friend, be tried as adults for the crime, the officers said.

While the 19-year-old was arrested and sent to judicial custody on Friday, the three minors were apprehended and produced before the juvenile justice board, which sent them to a correction home for boys, police said.

Although investigators recovered some documents, including birth and school certificates establishing the minors’ age, they are considering a bone ossification test to determine their exact age, an officer cited above said.

“We are preparing a watertight charge-sheet, which we plan to submit within a week. We will also request the court to try the three alleged juvenile accused as adults, as they are aged 16 and 17 and their crime falls under the heinous category,” the officer said.

Also Read: 4 gang-rape, murder 16-year-old in Swaroop Nagar

The four allegedly gang-raped the girl in the early hours of September 11, stabbed her at least six times, and then dumped her body in the open field near Kushak Road, where wild animals partially mauled it. Two days later, the mutilated body, with the right hand missing and the face and abdomen disfigured due to decomposition, was discovered. A tattoo—of three stars on the left arm—helped investigators identify her.

The bone ossification test of the victim will also be conducted to determine her exact age, as her family has not been able to produce any documents related to her birth and schooling. Her family had not filed a missing complaint, even though she had not returned home since the night of September 10, another officer said.

On Thursday, deputy commissioner of police (outer-north) Shobhit D Saksena announced that the mutilated body discovered on September 13 was that of a 16-year-old girl, who was stabbed to death after being gang-raped. The blind case was solved through technical investigation, which included scanning over 50 CCTV cameras that showed a goods vehicle near the field where the body was found.

Also Read:16-year-old girl gang-raped by 4 teens, found stabbed to death days later in Delhi

The vehicle’s ownership was established and its owner told the police that his younger brother, aged 17, had taken the vehicle. The teenager was interrogated. He confessed to the crime and disclosed the names of the three other suspects. All four were known to the girl.

“The arrested man claimed that he and his friends panicked and became angry after the girl allegedly threatened to file a rape case against them. He claimed she wanted to marry him but he was not ready. We are verifying the claims and also trying to ascertain if the murder was pre-planned, as the man and one juvenile were already carrying a knife each,” the second officer added.