14-year-old girl found raped, killed in her house at Bhiwandi near Mumbai; police on the lookout for culprits

Thane: A 14-year-old girl was found raped and killed by unidentified persons in her house at Bhiwandi near Thane in Maharashtra, police said on Friday. [caption id=“attachment_4945801” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  File image of Maharashtra Police. AFP[/caption] The girl was alone at her home in the powerloom town of Bhiwandi at the time of the incident on Thursday afternoon, Thane Police PRO Sukhada Narkar said. An offence under IPC sections 376 (rape) and 302 (murder) have been registered, she said, adding a manhunt has been launched for the culprits. However, it was not clear how many people were involved in the crime, which came to light when the victim’s elder sister returned home in the evening, Narkar said. The accused entered the house when she was alone and allegedly raped her. They then severely beat her and drowned her in a water tub, Narkar said. When the victim’s elder sister returned home, she was shocked to see her sibling lying dead. After her parents arrived, they lodged a police complaint, she said. The body was sent for post-mortem and based on its findings, the police registered the rape and murder offence against unidentified persons late in the night at the Narpoli police station, Narkar said.