GUWAHATI: A 23-year-old man has been arrested for allegedly raping a 42-year-old woman after killing her two weeks ago in Udalguri district. Her body was exhumed for post mortem on September 6.
The accused surrendered at Udalguri Sadar police station on Friday and was later arrested on charges of rape and murder. A local court sent him to 14-day judicial custody on Saturday.
The incident took place on August 25 when the woman went for a bath in a nearby stream.
A villager told the media that the husband of the woman was initially not convinced that someone from the village could be behind this brutal incident.
“We got information that when the woman was having a bath, the accused went from behind and hacked her to death. Later, he raped her. But initially, the picture was hazy and that’s why her husband was not ready for a serious legal battle since the villagers could not identify any accused,” he told the media.
Police sources said soon after the body of the woman was recovered, a village lobby tried to give a colour to the incident by creating rumours that she died under the influence of supernatural powers.
But following a probe demand from the family members of the victim and for the sake of investigation by the police, her body was dug out from the burial site.
“Her body was sent for post mortem in the presence of the magistrate. Yesterday, we could arrest the boy and a case has been registered under sections 376/302 of the IPC. We will try to close the case to its logical conclusion as soon as possible and take it for trial,” said Udalguri SP Supriya Das. She said the post mortem report will reveal more about the death.
An investigating police officer said the accused has confessed to raping and murdering the woman. The woman is a mother of two daughters, while the accused is a daily wager.
(The victim’s identity has not been revealed to protect her privacy as per Supreme Court directives on cases related to sexual assault)
The accused surrendered at Udalguri Sadar police station on Friday and was later arrested on charges of rape and murder. A local court sent him to 14-day judicial custody on Saturday.
The incident took place on August 25 when the woman went for a bath in a nearby stream.
A villager told the media that the husband of the woman was initially not convinced that someone from the village could be behind this brutal incident.
“We got information that when the woman was having a bath, the accused went from behind and hacked her to death. Later, he raped her. But initially, the picture was hazy and that’s why her husband was not ready for a serious legal battle since the villagers could not identify any accused,” he told the media.
Police sources said soon after the body of the woman was recovered, a village lobby tried to give a colour to the incident by creating rumours that she died under the influence of supernatural powers.
But following a probe demand from the family members of the victim and for the sake of investigation by the police, her body was dug out from the burial site.
“Her body was sent for post mortem in the presence of the magistrate. Yesterday, we could arrest the boy and a case has been registered under sections 376/302 of the IPC. We will try to close the case to its logical conclusion as soon as possible and take it for trial,” said Udalguri SP Supriya Das. She said the post mortem report will reveal more about the death.
An investigating police officer said the accused has confessed to raping and murdering the woman. The woman is a mother of two daughters, while the accused is a daily wager.
(The victim’s identity has not been revealed to protect her privacy as per Supreme Court directives on cases related to sexual assault)