A minor girl who had accompanied her parents to Mysuru, where they sold balloons during Dasara festivities, was raped and murdered in the early hours of Thursday, the police said, adding that they had arrested the suspect from Chamarajanagara district.
The police identified the suspect as Karthik, a resident of Siddalingapura in Mysuru, whom they arrested in Kollegal, where he had reached by bus after allegedly raping and killing the minor girl.
According to the police, the girl was among the four children of a couple from Kalaburagi.
“The child was sleeping with her family members in a temporary shed. Around 4 am, when her mother woke up as it had started raining, she noticed that one of her children was missing. Upon searching, they found the girl’s body 50 m away from the shed,” a police officer said.
During their investigation, the police were able to get CCTV footage of the suspect, which helped them track him down to Kollegal, where he was then arrested with the help of their counterparts.
A police officer said that the couple and their family had decided to return to Kalaburagi after the Sri Chamundeshwari Devi Teppotsava ended on Wednesday.
The police officer further said that Karthik had previously been arrested for allegedly attempting to rape a woman in Mandya district. He was jailed for two years and came out of prison four months ago.
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The Nazarbad police, who are investigating the girl’s rape and murder, will produce Karthik before a court on Friday morning, the officer added.