Five arrested for stabbing hawker to death

A 25-year-old hawker was stabbed to death in Northwest Delhi’s Mangolpuri area over an old rivalry, an official said on Thursday.

Five accused, including four juveniles, were arrested after a case was registered at the Mangolpuri Police Station. A knife used in the crime was recovered. Meanwhile, CCTV footage of the incident, which occurred on Wednesday, has surfaced online. The police said they received information from Sanjay Gandhi Memorial Hospital about a person being brought dead. The deceased was identified as Akash, a resident of Mangolpuri.

“The accused were identified by analysing CCTV footage from cameras installed near the crime scene,” a police officer said. The footage showed that Akash was stabbed at least 13 times. He tried to flee, but collapsed at the spot. Eyewitnesses, too, reportedly ran away in fear. However, an elderly man brought a stick from his house to confront the attackers, who then fled the scene.

The police said the body had been preserved at the hospital mortuary for post-mortem and other legal formalities.

Preliminary investigations suggest that an old enmity over a minor issue escalated into a violent confrontation. The police are interrogating the accused to ascertain the exact motive behind the murder.