F'bad: Man held for murder of 5-yr-old, cops suspect rape

A 36-year-old man was arrested in Faridabad on Tuesday for murdering a five-year-old girl, police said, adding that the suspect lived in the same building as the victim's family and used his familiarity to kidnap the girl and possibly rape her.

- Debashish Karmakar

According to police, the girl was last seen near her house in Palla area's Harkesh Nagar at approximately 4.30pm on Monday. The victim lived with her parents and two brothers in a rented accommodation. The girl's father works in a factory, and her mother is a homemaker.

After she was reported missing, her parents reviewed CCTV footage from nearby shops, where they found that the suspect was leading the girl on foot somewhere.

Police were alerted, and a search for the accused was launched. The suspect was apprehended by 9pm on Monday in an inebriated condition, according to investigators familiar with the probe.

Based on information he provided, police searched a jungle area behind a farmhouse in Palla.