The 23-year-old Rahul Meena, who is the main accused in the rape and murder of 22-year old in Delhi’s Kailash hills was reportedly addicted to online betting and card games and used to frequently borrow money to sustain his habits.
Meena was addicted to online betting and card games such as “teen patti” and had lost over ₹7 lakh in the last few months, news agency PTI quoted DCP (Southeast) Hemant Tiwari as saying.
His addiction to online betting and debt drove him to frequently borrow money to sustain his habit, the officer said.
Tiwari also noted that the accused had violent tendencies and was infamous for aggressive behaviour in his native village. Sharing details of his state of mind, the official added that he exhibited psychopathic tendencies and had a history of violent conduct.
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Hours before he arrived in Delhi and committed the crime, Meena reportedly raped another woman in Rajasthan’s Alwar. The husband of the accused was known to Meena as the two used to play ludo online together.
What had happened?
On the evening of Wednesday (April 22), a former house-help, who was angry about being laid off due to financial misconduct, entered the fourth-floor apartment at Delhi’s Kailash Hills using a spare key he knew the owners kept outside. The parents of the victim had gone to the gym, a habit Meena was aware of.
CCTV footage revealed that Meena was seen in the locality around 6:30 am and leaving around 7:15 am, spending roughly 40 minutes inside. He entered the apartment at 6:39 am.
Meena found the victim studying in her room, according to police reports and demanded money. When she refused and attempted to call her father, “he pressed her throat, then used a charger wire to strangle her, and then attacked her with a water bottle and a lamp on her head.”
He then raped her while she was unconscious but alive and then dragged her body down a flight of stairs in an attempt to access a fingerprint protected locker – which he knew could only be opened by one of the family members.
When he couldn’t open the locker with the victim’s fingerprints, he broke open the locker using a heavy object. Meena reportedly fled with ₹2 lakh in cash and ₹10 lakh worth of jewellery stuffed into a black backpack. Before leaving at 7:15 am, he changed out of his bloodstained clothes and shoes.
When arrested and presented in Saket court, Meena said he did this for money. “Galti hogayi. Maine paise ke liye kiya. Fingerprint chahiye tha locker kholne ke liye [Made a mistake. I did it for money. I needed fingerprint to open the locker].”
Autopsy report reveals fractured neck, broken nose
The autopsy report revealed multiple injuries on arms, hands, legs and face, including a broken nose, and serious damage to her neck, including a fractured thyroid cartilage.
It also revealed abrasions and bruises on victims arms, indicating she tried to fight the attacker. “The report revealed abrasions and bruises on victims arms, indicating she tried to fight the attacker,” Dr Sudhir Gupta, Head of the Forensic Department at AIIMS-Delhi said.
