Case overview and tools of investigation: The use of DNA profiling and “gait analysis” from CCTV footage results in the arrest of a paedophile and murderer in Mumbai.
Location: Mumbai
Twenty-six-year-old Abdul Siddique was talking on his mobile phone as he stepped into the Nehru Nagar locality of Kurla (East) in Mumbai. The time was 9 pm, and there were a lot of people on the road returning from work. This was a lower-middle-class neighbourhood, and the residents mostly belonged to the working class.
Abdul’s eyes were wide in anticipation of what lay ahead, and a gentle smile played on his lips. A passerby would think that the reason for Abdul’s smile was the conversation he was having on the phone. But the fact was Abdul’s phone was off and he was merely pretending to be on a call, smiling and nodding his head from time to time.
As he walked, his eyes scanned the surroundings carefully. Five feet seven inches tall, with a wheatish complexion and a slight build, Abdul had a forgettable face.
Ten minutes later, he sighted his target. It was a five-year-old girl who was sitting under a lamppost and playing with stones. His smile widening, he approached her.
Moving the phone a few inches away from his head, he whispered to the girl, “Hey, come on, your papa is calling you.”
The girl looked up and smiled after a moment’s hesitation.
Abdul continued, “Come fast. Papa is waiting for you with a chocolate.”
“Chocolate?” The girl threw the stones, got up and held Abdul’s extended finger. He began to walk away from the spot, the phone once again against his ear.
Five minutes later, they reached an under-construction building. The girl looked up at him and asked, “Papa? Chocolate?”
Abdul nodded towards the top of the building while pretending to be listening on the phone.
He tugged her hand forward, and the girl walked with him into the building. They climbed to the terrace of the five-floor building. Then, as they stopped, he said, “Arre, tere kapde pe to keeda baitha hai.” (Hey, there is an insect on your clothes.)
The girl brushed off her clothes.
Abdul said, “Kapde ke andar chala gaya hai. Chalo, kapde nikalo jaldi se.” (It has gone inside your clothes. Come on, take off your clothes quickly.)
The girl obeyed and was naked in a minute.
For the next half-hour, Abdul raped the girl. After he was done, he got up and looked around. No one had heard the girl’s cries – but what if someone had? What if this girl identified him later? What if the police caught him and sent him to jail? What if …?
Meanwhile, the girl regained consciousness and started to scream again. A pool of blood had formed under her, and Abdul panicked. He placed his hand over her nose and mouth. The girl was weak, but her body struggled for the next couple of minutes before falling silent.
Abdul removed his hand. It was all quiet now. He put on his trousers and looked around, his eyes wide with fear and his face shining in the dim light due to the sweat.
After a few minutes of searching, he found an empty gunny bag. He stuffed the girl’s body into the bag and dragged her to the staircase area. Then he pushed the gunny bag under the staircase and covered it with bricks, stones, sandbags and other construction rubble lying in the vicinity. Satisfied, he climbed the five floors down and walked out of the building, the phone once again against his ear as if he were still having a conversation.
Vijay Kamble, DCP of Zone 6 of Mumbai police, was at his desk when the phone rang. He closed the file he was reading and picked up the phone. “Kamble!”
The voice on the other side was edgy. “Sir, Inspector Gawde from Nehru Nagar police station speaking.”
“Yes, Gawde?”
“Sir, a five-year-old girl’s body has been found this morning at a construction site. Raped and murdered.”
Vijay took a deep breath and said, “What’s happening, Gawde? This is the third such case in, what, four months in your area?”
“Sir –”
“I don’t want to hear anything. Start asking around, check CCTV footage, get the autopsy and collect the DNA. DO IT NOW!” He shouted the final three words.
“Yes, sir.”
DCP Vijay Kamble disconnected the phone and looked at the picture of his wife and six-year-old daughter that was kept on the table. He stared at the picture for a few minutes, his eyes glassy.
He knew what would happen next. Therefore, a few minutes later, he called Inspector Gawde again. “Gawde, I want a two-hourly report.”
“Sir, two-hourly? What could I have every two hours to give you?”
“You better have something, Gawde. This was someone’s daughter. Three such daughters have been raped and murdered and what are we doing? Just sitting around, waiting for the next rape and murder! I want a two-hourly report, okay?”
“Yes, sir.”
He disconnected the phone and switched on the news. Just as expected, the media was there in full force, crawling all over the under-construction building, creating all kinds of stories, making the job of the police more difficult.
By the time he was done with his lunch, there was the phone call he knew would come. It was the DGP. The boss had chosen to bypass the hierarchy.
Without responding to DCP Kamble’s greeting, the DGP started to speak. “I got a call from the home minister just now, Kamble. This bastard needs to be caught before he commits another murder.”
“Yes, sir.”
“What’s your plan?”
“Sir, we are combing the Nehru Nagar area, asking anyone who could have seen this animal and going through the CCTV footage too. The body has been sent for autopsy, and we will pick up the DNA samples of the criminal. There was a medical examiner at the crime scene this morning, and he has spotted semen and hair belonging to the killer. But …”
“But what?”
“I wish we could compare the DNA with the people of the area, particularly those who have a criminal record.”
“So do that. What’s the problem?”
“The problem is the cost, sir. Each DNA test costs Rs 5,000.”
“You go ahead, Kamble. I will get you the financial approval. Just ask the laboratory in Santa Cruz to start their process. We have to catch this bastard before he strikes again.”
“Yes, sir.”
“And …”
The DGP paused for a few seconds, as if making up his mind about whether he should continue or not, but then he did, his voice lowered. “The last body was found on the terrace of the police quarters, wasn’t it? Are you sure no one from our force is involved? What about the family members of the police staff from your thana?”
“Sir, we investigated that angle. I don’t think anyone from our police force or their family members are involved.”
“I don’t agree with you here, Kamble. I want you to check the DNA of our guys too. Clear?”
Before DCP Kamble could respond, the phone was disconnected.
Excerpted with permission from Dial 100: Tough Cases, Tougher Policemen, Kulpreet Yadav, HarperCollins India.
