Woman's 55-yr-old partner kills, rapes her 3-yr-old granddaughter in Noida

Noida: The Noida Police on Monday arrested a 55-year-old man for allegedly raping and killing his 50-year-old girlfriend's three-year-old granddaughter as the couple believed she was a "hindrance to their marriage", officials said. The grandmother has also been detained for her role in the matter which was reported on December 25 after the child had gone "missing", the police said, as it busted the blind murder case.

The girl's body was recovered from an under-construction building near Ilahabas village on December 28, with the police launching a probe after it suspected that the child was sexually assaulted as well, officials said. They said the girl had been living with her grandmother as her father had been in jail for the last two years while her mother had been living in her home district of Budaun due to a dispute between the couple.

"The woman had on December 25 informed the local Phase 2 police station that her granddaughter had gone missing on December 24. An FIR was lodged under Indian Penal Code section 363 (missing) and search launched for the child," a police spokesperson said. "After investigation and post-mortem report, sexual assault against the child was confirmed. It was also confirmed that there had been an attempt to hide the evidence as the body was hidden under a log of plywood in the under-construction building," the official said.

With thorough investigation, the grandmother, who had reported the incident to the police, broke down during the questioning and confessed to her relationship with the man, the police claimed. "The man hails from Bulandshahr district but had been staying near Sector 88 in Noida for a long time. He has a criminal mentality. He along with his girlfriend had conspired the murder of the child, believing she was hindrance to their marriage," the spokesperson said.

The accused was arrested on Monday from Sector 88, while the woman has been detained and further legal proceedings are being carried out, the police said. Charges under IPC section 302 (murder), 376 (rape), 377 (unnatural offences), among others, as well as the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act have been added in the case, the police added.