Murder suspect taken to Shahbad Dairy, summons to victim’s friends

The investigators said that Sahil was taken to the crime scene inside a narrow alley in the area around 3am on Wednesday.

Delhi Police took Sahil, who is accused of brutally murdering a 16-year-old girl, to north-west Delhi’s Shahbad Dairy where the crime took place early on Wednesday morning in order to recreate the sequence of events, officers said.

People gathered outside the residence of of the 16-year-old girl who was allegedly stabbed to death by a man on Sunday at Shahbad Dairy, in New Delhi on Tuesday. (Sanchit Khanna/HT)(HT_PRINT)

The investigators said that Sahil was taken to the crime scene inside a narrow alley in the area around 3am on Wednesday. “The suspect was taken there early morning due to security reasons since the area is crowded. The police team sought information from Sahil to understand the sequence of events leading to the murde,” an investigator said asking not to be named.

The officer said that the police were yet to recover the weapon (a knife) with which the accused killed the girl. “Sahil is trying to mislead us by giving contradictory statements. We took him to several places, including the deserted area around Rithala Metro Station, where he allegedly threw the knife. However, nothing was found there. We are still interrogating him as the weapon is a vital evidence,” the officer added. When asked if the police will seek narco test on the accused, the officer said that there was no need for such tests in “cases like this”.

Sahil stabbed the girl at least 16 times and then bludgeoned her with a stone slab on Sunday night even as the crime was captured on a CCTV camera.

Meanwhile, the police have also issued summons to the friends of 16-year-old victim. The police said that they have been asked to join the investigation.

Special commissioner of police (law and order) Dependra Pathak said that three friends of the deceased have been asked to join the investigation. “Their statements are being recorded. One of them told the investigators that the deceased had told him that Sahil was pestering her. He also said that after meeting the victim on Saturday, he, along with his girlfriend and the victim, went to meet Sahil. He said they warned Sahil not to bother the girl. He further said that when he got the news about the incident, he immediately went to the spot and helped the police in putting the body into the ambulance,” he said.

Pathak said the police have also recorded the statements of the two girls. “We’ve also summoned the former boyfriend of the victim to join the investigation. Currently, he is in Jaunpur (Uttar Pradesh). He will join the probe in a day or two,” he said.

Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday approved an ex-gratia amount of ₹10 lakh for the victim’s family. Kejriwal tweeted, “Have approved and sent the file to Hon’ble LG for supporting the family of the victim with an amount of ₹10 lakhs. We stand with her family. Will support them in every possible way.” The chief minister announced the ex-gratia on Tuesday.

Officials said the file has been forwarded to the Lieutenant Governor (LG) for further action.

LG secretariat officials did not comment on the development.