Hyderabad, Aug 23 (IANS) A 14-year-old boy murdered a 10-year-old girl when the latter caught him trying to steal a cricket bat, police said.

Five days after the sensational murder of the girl at her house in the Kukatpally area, Cyberabad Police solved the mystery with the arrest of the minor boy, a student of 10th class.

Cyberabad Police Commissioner Avinash Mohanty announced the breakthrough in the case at a press conference on Saturday.

Police said the boy brutally stabbed the victim multiple times when she caught him attempting to steal her brother’s cricket bat.

The girl was found murdered when she was alone at her house on August 18. Despite a thorough investigation, including scanning of CCTV footage from the neighbourhood, police found no clue of any suspect entering the house.

However, working on a clue gathered during the questioning of one of the residents in the apartment building, police zeroed in on the suspect, who confessed to the crime.

The boy, a neighbour of the victim, had entered the building through the terrace and barged into the victim’s house to steal a cricket bat belonging to the victim’s younger brother. As the girl caught her stealing the bat and raised an alarm, the boy picked up the knife and stabbed her.

The Police Commissioner said the accused washed the knife and his hands, changed his clothes and attempted to behave normally to avoid suspicion. The boy initially tried to mislead investigators by claiming he had only heard noises of someone entering the house, but forensic clues, circumstantial evidence, and sustained questioning established his involvement in the crime.

A handwritten note in which he had detailed his plan, the stolen cricket bat and the clothes worn by the accused at the time of the offence were also seized.

Police said the Child in Conflict with Law (CCL) was produced before the juvenile justice court.

However, the victim’s parents accused the police of diluting the case. They, along with their relatives, staged a protest in front of Kukatpally Police Station, demanding the harshest punishment for the accused.

They disputed the police version that the accused entered the house to steal the bat and murdered the victim when he was caught. The victim’s parents alleged that police were trying to save the accused from stringent punishment by calling him a minor.

State SC ST Commission Chairman B. Venkataiah met the victim’s parents and gathered details of the incident.

–IANS

ms/uk