Police on Saturday said they have arrested a 36-year-old man who went on the run after brutally killing his 12-year-old stepson in northeast Delhi’s Shastri Park a day earlier following an argument with the boy’s mother.
A fake robbery happened in the western part of the city. (Hindustan Times File)The accused, an e-rickshaw driver, told the police that he killed the child after an argument with his wife over their two children, including the victim, who had returned home from a hostel. He alleged that after an argument, the woman denied him sexual favors and went to a relative’s house and killed the boy to teach him a “lesson”.
Police said they are probing all claims made by the accused, who were arrested from Ghaziabad after a day-long raid when the mutilated body of the boy, a Class 7 student, was found in bushes near Shastri Park Chowk early on Friday, investigators said.
According to the police, the boy’s mother received a WhatsApp video from an unknown number the next day, in which the suspect confessed to the murder and showed her the boy’s body. The mother told HT on Friday: “In the video, she says: ‘Ja apne bhake ko le ja (Go and get your son). I saw my son lying there bleeding.”
Senior officials said on Saturday that doctors confirmed the brutal attack. “The boy was attacked with stones, sticks and a sharp weapon. His eyes were gouged out, his head was smashed and he had multiple cuts on his face and ears. His throat was also cut,” said a police official.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (Northeast) Ashish Mishra said multiple teams were formed and the suspect was arrested on Saturday morning. His e-rickshaw, which he used to abduct the boy, has also been seized, the officer said.
Police said the victim’s family had no complaint against the accused. The family claims that complaints were filed earlier, which were later withdrawn.
The mother told HT: “About three days ago, we had an argument and I asked the man to leave, which made him very angry. I also went to my relative’s house. I thought he would take the children and drop them from school in my absence. I did not know that he would take this time to torture and kill my son.”
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Investigators said two mobile phone numbers linked to the accused have been recovered. “Both the numbers went off after the man sent the video of the killing of his wife on Friday morning. He also sent a picture of the dead body to his elder brother. The couple also fought as the wife demanded her sons (from first marriage) stay with them,” another official said.
The child’s biological father died in 2019 and his mother remarried in 2020.
