1 week Ago By Hanmi Reddy
Hubballi, April 14 : A five-year-old girl was found murdered in Vijayanagara in the Ashoknagar police station limits of Hubballi on Sunday, triggering public outrage. Neighbors, joined by local elected representatives, staged a protest demanding justice and swift action against the accused. Within hours, the police shot dead the suspect after he allegedly attempted to attack officers and escape.
Briefing the media, City Police Commissioner N Shashi Kumar said the victim’s family hails from Koppal district. Her father works as a painter, while her mother is employed as a domestic worker. When the mother had gone to work the child went missing around 10.
45 am on Sunday. When the parents and neighbors tried to search, the girl was found in a nearby shed. Though she was immediately rushed to KMC-RI, she was declared dead.
When asked if the girl had been raped, the Commissioner said that the police would give a requisition asking for all details related to the death. The police will give requisition asking for the cause of death and also if there is any abuse on the child. Based on CCTV footage and local leads, police took a suspect, identified as Ritesh Kumar (35) from Patna, Bihar, into custody for questioning.
During questioning, he revealed only a few details. “He said he was Ritesh Kumar from Patna. He has been away from his home for several years and was living in an abandoned house near the Tarihal bridge for the past two to three months,” the Commissioner said.
He added that when police took the suspect to the location to verify his background and gather more information around 6.30 pm, he suddenly turned violent. “He pelted stones at the police vehicle and attacked our personnel while trying to flee.
PSI Annapoorna and constables Yashwanth and Veeresh sustained injuries in the incident,” he said. “Despite a warning shot, the accused continued to attack. PSI Annapoorna then fired 2-3 rounds.
One bullet hit his leg and another struck his back. He collapsed on the spot and was rushed to KMC-RI, where doctors declared him dead,” the Commissioner said..
