Representative image of occult ritual.
Credit: iStock Photo
Deoria: A nine-year-old child was allegedly killed here as "sacrifice" in occult practices by four relatives, police said on Saturday.
One of the accused allegedly believed that his wife was "possessed" by a deity and needed a human sacrifice to cure her. They allegedly slit the boy's throat, buried him and later took out his body and threw it into the river, they said.
The child, Aarush Gaur(9), a resident of Patkhauli village under Bhaluwani Police station area, had been missing since April 17, Superintendent of Police Vikrant Vir said.
Police launched an investigation and formed several teams to search for the boy.
"The investigation led to the arrest of Jaiprakash Gaur, who, during interrogation, confessed to the crime and revealed the names of his accomplices. We have also arrested one Indrajeet Kumar Gaur, also known as Atul Kumar, Bheem Gaur, and Ramashankar alias Shankar Gaur, from Gorakhpur. All four accused are relatives," the officer said.
"To cure her (the wife), Indrajeet and his in-laws allegedly approached his uncle, Jaiprakash, who recommended a human sacrifice. Indrajeet then contacted Ramashankar, his distant relative offering him Rs 50,000 to arrange for a young child," the officer said.
On April 16, Ramashankar allegedly brought his own nephew, Aarush Gaur, to his home. The boy was later handed over to Indrajeet and Bheem.
"On the night of April 19, the accused allegedly performed a ritual at an orchard in Pipra Chandrabhan, where they slit the boy's throat and buried his body. The body was later exhumed, placed in a sack, and thrown into a river at Gauraghat, Barhaj, with the help of a pickup vehicle on April 20," said the officer.
All four accused have been arrested and sent to jail.