UP Police crack blind murder case; schoolboy held for killing e-rickshaw driver in woods

Manual and technical evidence were collated, and leads were cross-verified to narrow down the suspect.

Gonda: It was a textbook blind murder with scarce clues, no witnesses and no apparent motive. Investigators had literally nothing to go by when called upon to solve the killing of an e-rickshaw driver, eventually traced to a schoolboy.

A month later, police apprehended a Class 11 student who strangled 50-year-old Sangam Lal to death in isolated woods.

Sangam Lal was allegedly forcing the boy to perform "unnatural acts" when he had come alone to offer prayers in neighbouring Ayodhya from Jhansi, some 350 km away, they said.

According to police, the incident occurred in the pre-dawn hours of August 27 in Nawabganj, Gonda. Sangam Lal's body was found lying in thick undergrowth.

Senior Superintendent of Police, Gonda, Vineet Jaiswal, described the case as "extremely challenging".

"This was not a typical case involving property disputes, personal grudges, or financial motives. The body was found in isolation, making it a textbook blind murder scenario," he said.

Sangam Lal had gone missing the previous night (on August 26) while at work in neighbouring Ayodhya. His family alerted the police, who rushed to the scene and conducted a thorough examination.

The post-mortem confirmed that he had been strangled, and the victim's personal belongings, including a wallet with an Aadhaar card, were found discarded in nearby bushes. The circumstances showing no apparent robbery, no prior threats, and no personal feud left investigators grappling with minimal leads.

To solve the case, police formed three specialised teams, combining Nawabganj Police, Special Operations Group (SOG), and surveillance units under the supervision of ASP (West) Radheshyam Rai and Tarabganj Circle Officer Umeshwar Prabhat Singh. Field units, dog squads, and forensic teams scoured the site for evidence. CCTV footage from the Ayodhya railway station and surrounding areas was meticulously analysed over several days.

The breakthrough came almost a month later, on September 22, when the teams identified and apprehended a juvenile from Babina in Jhansi, who had been staying in a hostel there, according to officials.

Interrogation revealed that the accused, a Class 11 student, had travelled alone to Ayodhya on August 26 via the Ayodhya Utsarg Express for a temple visit. He had boarded Sangam Lal's e-rickshaw, and the driver, believing the boy had sufficient time for darshan, took him around for hours in search of a secluded spot.

According to the police, a confrontation arose when the driver allegedly pressured the boy for "unnatural acts". In a struggle, the juvenile allegedly strangled the driver using a gamchha (scarf). After the act, he discarded the victim's wallet and fled.

Police have since taken the juvenile into custody and produced him before the Juvenile Justice Board. The wallet, recovered near the crime scene, provided a crucial link to the suspect. Investigators continue to probe whether the accused had any accomplices or assistance in planning or executing the act.

Jaiswal credited the swift resolution to a mix of modern technology, surveillance, dog squad deployment, and traditional investigative techniques.

"Even in blind murder cases, where there is no clear motive or witnesses, a combination of meticulous investigation, evidence tracking, and inter-departmental coordination can yield results in a remarkably short time," he noted.

The juvenile, held on charges of murder, has been sent to a correctional home, the police said.