Mumbai: Notorious serial rapist, murderer, accused in 20 cases, nailed
What's the story
Almost a decade after he raped and murdered two girls, a notorious serial rapist in Mumbai who is accused in at least 20 cases has been been conclusively identified, thanks to forensic tests.
Navi Mumbai police said that DNA profiling confirmed that the accused, 34-year-old Rehan Qureshi, had committed the crimes.
Qureshi was nabbed last month for targeting and raping minor girls.
Here's more.
Cases
Details of the cases against Rehan Qureshi
Of the 20 odd cases in which Qureshi is accused, 18 involved sexual assault on minor girls, and took place since 2015.
However, the remaining two are rape and murder cases dating back to 2010.
Despite raping and murdering two girls in 2010, Qureshi wasn't identified and seemed to be in the clear.
But, when cases started recurring, police suspected a serial offender's hand.
Do you know?
The gruesome rape and murders had left Kurla shocked
The 2010 rape and murder cases had rocked Kurla's Nehru Nagar and had left residents panicked. The first victim had been a nine-year-old who Qureshi raped and strangled. The second was a six-year-old whose head Qureshi bashed in after raping and strangling her.
Arrest
Police tracked Qureshi to his Mira Road residence
Suspecting a pattern in the recent rape and sexual assault cases on minor girls, police started scanning CCTV footage.
They identified two potential suspects - one turned out to be Qureshi; the other yet to be identified and remains at large.
Then, last month, after tracking Qureshi's movements for a while, Navi Mumbai police nabbed him near his residence at Mira Road.
Confession
Qureshi's mother knew his son was a criminal
Once Qureshi was nabbed, DNA profiling confirmed his guilt in the two 2010 rape and murder cases.
Further, upon being interrogated, Qureshi also confessed to both murders, and several recent cases of sexual assault on minors across Navi Mumbai.
He added that he had confessed to his mother about his criminal activities, but had not revealed the nature of the crimes he was committing.
Quote
Mother of victim wants Qureshi to hang
Speaking to Hindustan Times, the mother of Qureshi's first victim said, "My daughter will not return but there should be justice, and he should be hanged."