Delhi Police have cracked the case of an unidentified body that was found near Kargil Chowk in Dwarka Sector-18A on July 12. The body, lying in the grass between the road and a drain, was badly decomposed and bore deep injury marks on the head. Some tattoos were visible on the body, but investigators could not establish identity immediately because no documents were found at the spot. The body was in such poor condition that identifying it through conventional means was virtually impossible, while the deep wounds on the head immediately pointed investigators toward foul play. A murder case was registered at Dwarka North police station under Section 103(1) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.
500 CCTV cameras scanned to trace the identity
With no documents to go on, identifying the victim became the toughest part of the investigation. Police combed through footage from close to 500 CCTV cameras installed at the crime scene and along nearby roads. Given the seriousness of the case, a joint team of the Special Staff and Dwarka North police was formed under the supervision of Assistant Commissioner of Police Subhash Malik. The team pieced together footage from multiple angles to trace, step by step, the movements of both the victim and the accused. After extensive effort, the deceased was identified as 38 year old Akhilesh Mandal, a resident of Najafgarh. Detailed analysis of the CCTV footage and technical surveillance eventually led police to two accused. The first, 66 year old Anil Thakur, is also a resident of Najafgarh, while the second, 28 year old Raju Kumar, hails from Muzaffarpur in Bihar.
Dispute over selling the house turned bitter
During questioning, Anil Thakur told police that Akhilesh Mandal was living at his house. Akhilesh had a drinking problem, which frequently led to arguments between the two. Police said Akhilesh's drinking often led to commotion inside the house, which had already left Anil Thakur frustrated even before the dispute over the house sale began. The friction deepened further after Anil Thakur decided to sell his house, a move Akhilesh strongly opposed. This opposition pushed the tension between them even higher. Fed up with the resistance, Anil Thakur allegedly planned to eliminate him.
Killed with a hammer, then misled the victim's family
On July 10, Anil Thakur lured Akhilesh to Dwarka Sector-13 on a pretext. From there, both accused took him to a secluded spot and attacked him repeatedly with a hammer, killing him on the spot. After the murder, the two accused fled and hid in the Dharampura area of Najafgarh. Police said Anil Thakur, the main accused, already knew Akhilesh's family, which is why he stayed in touch with them even after the murder and kept misleading them about his whereabouts. He kept the family in the dark, giving the impression that Akhilesh's whereabouts were simply unknown, even as he himself was behind the killing. Police have now seized the hammer used in the crime, the clothes worn by the accused at the time of the incident, and their mobile phones. The seized hammer, clothes and mobile phones are now being examined to piece together the remaining details of the case, and the investigation is continuing.
