April 04, 2018 | Rising Kashmir News

Strands of hair found in a temple where 8-year-old Asifa Bano was held captive before being strangulated after rape have matched with the victim's (Asifa) hair on DNA analysis.

Official sources said that the crime branch, probing the rape-and-murder, had found hair strands from Devistan temple in Hiranagar after one of the accused revealed during interrogation that Asifa was held captive inside the temple.

The crime site was searched and the hair strands were found and sent to Forensic Laboratory (FSL) New Delhi. The report confirmed that they were that of Asifa, the sources said.

The FSL report was received by the crime branch on Tuesday along with the postmortem report which has also confirmed the seductive medicine (Clonazepam) was used by the accused to make Asifa unconscious.

The investigating agency has so far arrested nine accused persons including the mastermind Sanji Ram and his son Vishal Kumar, a police head constable, two SPOs and a sub-inspector of police in connection with the crime.

The minor girl had been missing since January 10 when she failed to return home from watering horses in her native Rassana forests, and her body was found on January 17.

On January 23, handed the case over to the Crime Branch. (GNS)