Bolangir/Titilagarh: In a spine-chilling incident, a 17-year-old boy allegedly stabbed his 12-year-old younger brother to death over a petty quarrel and later buried the body at Titilagarh town in Bolangir district, police said Saturday.
During a presser held at Titilagarh police station Saturday, Bolangir Superintendent of Police (SP) Abilash G told the mediapersons that the horrific murder, which took place about one-and-a-half months ago, had shocked the community.
The SP said Manasi Podh, a woman of Hatapadapada (Gorubazarpada) in Titilagarh town, reported to the police that her 12-year-old son, a Class VII student, had been missing from home since 5pm June 28. Titilagarh police registered a case (216/25) and launched an investigation. With no breakthrough in the case even after 42 days, Manasi informed the police that she suspected her elder son’s involvement in the disappearance of her younger son. Manasi and her husband Cheru Podh, are both daily wagers. She said that her elder son had dropped out of school after completing matriculation, while her younger son was studying in Class VII. The couple returned home from work and found their younger son missing. In the evening, Manasi found her elder son cleaning the floor of the house with phenyl.
On being asked as to why he was cleaning the floor, he said he was removing dirt and soil stuck to the floor. Based on this tip, officers questioned the boy in the presence of a magistrate. He allegedly confessed to killing his younger brother and burying the body. According to police, on the fateful day, the accused elder son stabbed his younger brother with a kitchen knife, dug a pit in the backyard of the house and buried the body.
Later that night, after their parents had gone to bed, he reportedly dug it up, carried it on his shoulder and reburied it near a creek. During a crime scene reconstruction Saturday, the boy told police that he had harboured a grudge against the deceased as their parents showed more affection to the younger sibling during a quarrel while they were eating guavas.
Acting on the boy’s statement, police, along with a scientific team and sniffer dogs searched an area about 300 metres from Manasi’s home and recovered a decomposed body and skeletal remains buried near a drain.
The remains were sent to Bhima Bhoi Medical College and Hospital (BBMCH) in Bolangir for an autopsy. Residents expressed disbelief, with some speculating it could be a case of human sacrifice. However, the SP dismissed such a possibility.