Key accused in 11-year-old rape-murder case in Bengal killed in police encounter

One of the accused in the rape and murder of an 11-year-old girl in West Bengal's Baruipur was killed in an alleged encounter early on Wednesday after he "tried to escape from police custody" during a crime scene reconstruction exercise, a senior officer said.

The accused, identified as Prabhas Mondal, was the first person arrested in connection with the case and was considered one of the prime suspects after CCTV footage purportedly showed him with the minor shortly before she had gone missing.

According to the police, Mondal was taken to Surjyapur in South 24 Parganas district around 12.45 am for reconstruction of the crime scene as part of the investigation.

"During the exercise, he suddenly snatched a service firearm from a policeman and attempted to escape. He also fired one round at the police team. The police retaliated in self-defence, in which he sustained bullet injuries," the officer said.

Mondal was taken to the Baruipur Sub-Divisional Hospital, where doctors declared him dead.

The police said Mondal had allegedly been misleading investigators during questioning and was not cooperating with the probe, prompting the investigation team to reconstruct the crime scene to ascertain the sequence of events and his role in the crime.

The body of the girl, who had gone missing on July 4, was recovered from a pond in the Surjyapur Haat area the next day.

The police have alleged that she was raped and murdered before her body was dumped in a sack.

The incident triggered widespread outrage, with angry locals blocking the Baruipur-Joynagar Road, setting tyres ablaze and vandalising police vehicles, demanding immediate arrest and stringent punishment for those responsible.

Hours after the girl's body was recovered on Sunday, a man was lynched by a mob on suspicion of involvement in the crime.

West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari on Tuesday said the victim of the mob attack was innocent and directed DGP Siddh Nath Gupta to submit a report on the rape-murder case within 72 hours.

Adhikari also said his government has a "zero tolerance" policy towards the crime.