The accused, a Ved Road resident, used to live in the girl’s neighbourhood. He enticed the victim into his home by offering her money.
Panchal murdered her and hide her body under the bed after committing the crime. According to Crime Branch Police Inspector Kiran Modi, he had planned to dispose of the body but decided against it because it was not possible during the day.
People protested the rape and murder of a seven-year-old girl in Katargam on Thursday, blocking the Singanpur circle and demanding the death penalty for the accused. The police had to intervene half an hour after the protest to calm down the enraged locals. Sensing the gravity of the situation, BJP MLA Vinu Moradia cancelled his planned victory march for the day.
The accused identified as Mukesh alias Muko Chimanlal Panchal was nabbed by the Surat Crime Branch team within hours after the killing of the minor girl from the Pandol area.
Previously, the accused was apprehended 14 times by different police stations in cases involving vehicle theft. Panchal, a repeat offender, locked the door and fled. The suspicion grew as he did not answer any police calls. The police team then broke down his door, only to discover the minor’s body wrapped in a bag under the bed.
Family members of the minor identified the body. The girl’s family is from the Ganjam district of Odisha, but they moved to Surat many years ago. Meanwhile, Vinu Moradia, a Bharatiya Janata Party candidate and minister who won the Katargam assembly seat in the elections, postponed his victory rally due to the protests.