Delhi Police arrested two men for allegedly killing a 19-year-old woman and burying her body in a pit in an abandoned area in Haryana, officials said on Friday (October 25, 2024).
“The accused were identified as Sanju alias Saleem (victim’s boyfriend), Pankaj and Ritik,” police said.
The police received a complaint from the victim’s brother on October 22 stating that his sister had gone missing. “He suspected that a man, whom his sister recently befriended, might have been involved in her disappearance,” they said.
"Upon receiving the complaint, multiple teams were formed to investigate. The woman's phone was switched off," a senior police officer said.
During the investigation, the police apprehended Mr. Sanju and Mr. Pankaj. They confessed to the crime and said that they had rented a car on October 21 and took the victim along with some of her belongings.
A senior police officer, privy to the investigation, said that they had earlier suspected that the woman wanted to marry Mr. Sanju but he kept asking for some more time.
The police also found that on the day of Karwa Chauth (October 21), when the victim was fasting, she reportedly had a fight with Mr. Sanju and they decided to meet. Following this, he asked his friends Mr. Pankaj and Mr. Ritik to arrange for a car to go on a long drive.
"They all boarded the car and drove towards Rohtak. So far, we know that they killed her and buried her body under four-foot-deep pit in an abandoned area in Madina of Rohtak district" the police officer said.
"Our team recovered the victim's body from the pit in the abandoned area in Madina," another police officer added.
Police further said that a case has been registered. “They are looking for the third accused in the case, Ritik,” the officer said.
Sources in the police said that some of the family members are also claiming that the victim was pregnant and teams are investigating the case from all angles.
Meanwhile, the victim's mother demanded strict action against the accused. She said that her daughter was a social media influencer and used to make short videos for different platforms.
"We got to know that she met a boy a few months back. They became good friends and started talking. It was shocking when we came to know that his real name was Saleem. He confessed to killing my daughter and buried her body. We want strict action against all the accused," she said.
The victim's brother-in-law said that the accused had used a different name when he befriended the woman.
Published - October 26, 2024 11:09 am IST
