Thane police have arrested a 19-year-old man for the rape and murder of a minor girl in Mumbra. The arrest followed the discovery of the girl's body in a building duct, where it had allegedly been disposed of by the accused. The disturbing discovery was made by local residents who heard unusual sounds emanating from a window duct in a first-floor apartment of a building in the Thakurpada area. Upon investigation, they found the partially clothed body of the girl around 11 pm on Monday. Responding to the locals' alert, a police team arrived at the scene and, with the assistance of the fire brigade, retrieved the body. Initially, an accidental death report was filed. However, a subsequent postmortem examination revealed that the girl had been raped and murdered, prompting the police to register a formal case of rape and murder.
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A crucial lead emerged from a girl who had been playing with the victim. She informed the police that a man had lured the victim with the promise of toys, leading her to the building where her body was later found. Based on the girl's description, the police began a search for the suspect. The accused, identified as Asif Mansoori, was apprehended on the sixth floor of the same building. Upon being identified by the witness and following sustained interrogation, Mansoori confessed to the crime. Police also recovered some of the victim's clothing from Mansoori's residence. Mansoori, originally from Bihar, had come to Mumbra in search of employment, according to police officials. The investigation is ongoing. Emergency services, including personnel from the Mumbra police station, fire brigade teams, regional disaster management cell and a private ambulance reached the spot. Despite a challenging rescue operation due to the narrow structure of the shaft, fire brigade officials retrieved the child. She was then taken to the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Hospital in Kalwa where doctors declared her brought dead.