Kamakhyanagar: Police arrested the prime accused in the rape and murder case involving a Plus II first-year college student in Dhenkanal district, three days after the crime, officials said Saturday. Police conducted a reconstruction of the crime scene with the accused and arrested two other accomplices.
However, they refrained from naming the accomplices. The accused, identified as Gangadhar Patra alias Jaga of Santarapur village, was taken into custody from a relative’s house near the Dhenkanal-Keonjhar district border.
Police said the accused waylaid the victim at Jagannath Bazaar Square in Kamakhyanagar town while returning home after an examination March 18. The accused allegedly abducted her in a car, took her to a nearby forest and raped her.
Police said the victim’s condition deteriorated, prompting the accused to briefly bring her back towards town before returning to the forest. She later died. The accused allegedly fled the scene and later sought help from relatives to dispose of the body.
The body was reportedly dumped in a forest near Saruali village late at night. Police recovered the body the next morning and launched an investigation. The vehicle used in the crime has been seized.
