Kochi: The Puthencruz police zeroed in on the paternal uncle of the three-year-old girl, allegedly murdered by her mother in Moozhikulam, for sexually abusing the child, going by a strong sense of intuition supported by circumstantial evidence. 

The missing case-turned-murder from Monday led to the arrest of the man on Thursday based on the findings in the postmortem examination. The police are yet to receive the autopsy report, but the doctor informed them about the clear evidence of sexual abuse when her statement was recorded as part of the probe. “It would usually take at least a week to receive the final report,” a police source told Onmanorama.

The doctor informed the police of the injuries on the private parts of the girl, which suggested she was abused in recent times, though no specific time period was mentioned. As soon as they got the information, the police registered a zero FIR at Chengamanad station, where the arrest of the mother had already been recorded on charges of murder on Tuesday. The mother was taken into custody the previous night after she confessed to throwing her daughter into the Chalakudy river. The body was found in the river by 2.30 am on Tuesday. 

Police sources said the woman has not said anything suggesting she knew about the sexual abuse her daughter had to endure from a close relative. The police, however, noted that she had mentioned that the girl was close to some male relatives of hers. Once the funeral of the child was over, the police started questioning her relatives. The police kept their eyes close on the potential suspects from within the family, even as they investigated other possibilities. 

On Wednesday, the police summoned three close male relatives of the girl to the Puthencruz police station and questioned them again. “It was natural to doubt them as the girl spent most of the time with them,” a police officer said. Two of them were let off later, and the third one was retained in custody. “By then we were almost sure it was him,” the officer said. The man confessed to the crime after intense questioning. The victim lived close to the house of the predator and he abused her on several occasions when she went to sleep over at his house. Police said he was clearly making use of the proximity and relationship with the victim.

The police were keen to ensure that the information on the sexual abuse was not leaked until they shortlisted the three suspects from within the family. 

The rape accused was remanded in the Muvattupuzha sub jail after being produced before a local court. He has been charged under Section 3 and 6 of the POCSO Act (Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012) which deal with penetrative sexual assault and aggravated penetrative sexual assault as well as Section 64 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) dealing with rape. The Chengamanad police have got the mother of the girl in custody for five days.