Three given death for rape-murder of 8-year-old in Karnataka

MANGALURU: A Pocso court has awarded death penalty to three accused persons for rape and murder of an eight-year-old girl at a factory in Mangaluru taluk of Dakshina Kannada district in 2021. The convicted trio were identified as Jayban Adivasi (24), Mukhesh Singh (23) from Panna district in MP; and Manish Tirki (36) from Ranchi in Jharkhand. The fourth accused, Muneem Singh from MP, who was on bail, is absconding.

Judge Maanu KS of additional district and sessions court handed death sentence to the trio in first such punishment by this district Pocso court, according to special public prosecutor K Badrinath Nairy. The court held the accused guilty on Oct 29 and heard arguments on sentencing on Nov 4. It delivered the final judgment on Thursday.



The incident was reported from a tile factory at Parari in Tiruvail on Nov 21, 2021. On Nov 21, the accused allegedly lured the minor girl on pretext of offering money to buy a toffee and took her to the factory where there were no CCTV cameras. The three accused took turns to sexually assault her and also indulged in unnatural sex.

When the girl started screaming for help, Jayban allegedly strangled her to death. Later, the accused hid the girl's body in a nearby drain, Nairy said. Mangaluru rural police registered a case under IPC and Pocso Act.

Court examined 30 witnesses, 74 documents and 45 material objects. The judge imposed death penalty on the three accused for hatching criminal conspiracy, issuing threat to life, committing gangrape, sexual assault and murder, besides destroying evidence. The court said Rs 1.

2 lakh collective penalty raised from the accused should be handed to the minor girl's parents. The judge asked the District Legal Services Authority to pay Rs 3.8 lakh in compensation to the girl's family under the victim compensation scheme.

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