Illustration by Mir Suhail.

Chaitanya Mangure CNN-News18

Updated on: February 8, 2019, 11:31 PM IST

February 8, 2019, 11:31 PM IST FOLLOW US ON: Facebook Twitter Instagram

Mumbai: A footpath dweller in Mumbai was arrested for rape and murder of a 5-year-old girl on Friday, the police said. The 23-year-old man, identified as Mehandi Hassan Mushtaq Shaikh, had strangulated the minor after raping her and had dumped the body near a footpath.

The accused abducted the girl from the shanty where she was sleeping with her parents at around 3:30 am on Thursday, the police said. He then took her to a nearby open space, where he raped her. Fearing that the girl might reveal the incident to her parents, Shaikh strangulated her. After killing the girl, Shaikh walked back to his shanty and slept off.


On Thursday morning, the girl’s parents approached the police when they found that their daughter was missing from their roadside shanty near Mumbai’s Mahim. They alerted the police who formed a team to find the girl.

The minor was found unconscious near St. Michael Church road, few meters away from her home. She was immediately rushed to a hospital, where she was declared brought dead.


The CCTV footage showed the girl being taken away by a man. Several footpath dwellers were picked up for questioning, including Shaikh. He confessed to the crime during investigation.

According to police, Shaikh is married and has three daughters and lives with his family on the same footpath where the victim lived.


He has been booked under section 302, 376A, 376B of the IPC along with sections of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO).