5 Years After Acquittal In Rape Cases, MP Man Rapes And Murders Disabled Minor

The police, as part of its probe, questioned 418 suspects, searched 17 railway stations., reviewed footage from 136 CCTV cameras before finally tracing the accused.

A man who had served a 10-year prison sentence in a rape case and who had also been awarded a death sentence by a trial court in another rape case, was arrested by the Madhya Pradesh police for raping and killing an 11-year-old hearing and speech impaired girl in Madhya Pradesh's Rajgarh district. His acquittal in the case where he was awarded a death sentence was also challenged before the Supreme Court. 

The girl had reportedly gone missing from her home on the night of February 1. She was found with severe injuries in nearby bushes the next morning. She died in a hospital in Bhopal on February 8.

Accused Nabbed After Searching 9 Districts, 17 Railway Stations Over 6 Days

The police, as part of its probe, questioned 418 suspects, which included  "382 labourers from the local mandi area", Indian Express reported.

By the time the police identified the accused, he fled the state and headed to the Kumbh Mela in Prayagraj. He was caught by the police on a train to Jaipur.

According to a report by India Today, a auto-rickshaw driver had confirmed that the man arrived from the Kurawar bus stand on the day of the incident. This led the police to the suspect's home in Akodia, where they found out that he had gone to the Kumbh.

Police then conducted raids across various districts in MP and UP and even search 17 railway stations. They reviewed footage from 136 CCTV cameras, identified 79 individuals, and also analysed call detail records of more than 700 mobile numbers, India Today reported.

Rajgarh Superintendent of Police Aditya Mishra told the Indian Express that special teams scoured through nine districts from Ujjain to Prayagraj to trace and nab the accused. "Our teams went as far as Jaipur to look for him. Seventeen railway stations were searched and nearly 400-plus CCTV footages scrutinised," he said.

The SP said that the accused had been taken into custody, and the process of ensuring that he be given the "strictest punishment" is being expedited.

The accused, Ramesh Khati, is a habitual offender and has a history of multiple crimes for which he has previously served time in prison. He was first arrested and found guilty in a rape case in 2003, following which he served a 10-year sentence.

After his release, he was booked again in a theft case in 2013, and was then booked again in 2014 after he raped an eight-year-old girl in Sehore.

He was handed a death sentence by the trial court in the 2014 case, but it was overturned by the High Court in 2019. The High Court had noted that the father of the victim was present during the identification parade, which could have influenced the results.

SP Mishra said that the evidence is being thoroughly verified. "Given his modus operandi, we are conducting DNA profiling and cross-matching to determine if he is linked to other unsolved cases," he said.