One Kurla rape culprit held, others at large

The police on Thursday claimed a major breakthrough in the rape and murder of a minor girl in Kurla with the arrest of 19-year-old Javed Rehman Shaikh. However, scientific evidence has overruled the possibility of him being the serial killer in the other two similar cases from the area.

The examination of DNA samples has established that the first two incidents were the handiwork of one person, but the culprit was different in the third case, which came to light on June 19.

While the police said they arrested Javed on the basis of scientific evidence, they are yet to make any headway in the earlier cases.

On June 6, Nusrat Khursheed Alam Shaikh, 8, a resident of Ali Shramik Nagar in Kurla (E), disappeared after stepping out of her house to play. Her body was found in a house near Balwadi in the Vatsalatai Nagar slum on June 19. “DNA tests conducted on nail clippings of Nusrat and other things matched with the DNA of Javed,” city police chief Sanjeev Dayal said.

Earlier, the police had sent DNA samples of several locals, including that of Javed, to the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) for examination. These were matched with the samples available in the earlier cases.

“The FSL officials had orally informed us that the DNA found on Nusrat’s body did not match with that of the accused in the first two cases,’’ said Dayal. This ruled out Javed’s involvement in these cases.

Javed was arrested from his workplace and was produced before the Vikhroli court, which remanded him in police custody till July 14. The police, however, said they were yet to ascertain the exact sequence of events leading to Nusrat’s murder.

“We have to investigate how Javed managed to abduct Nusrat, took her to a room and left the place after locking the door,” said Dayal, adding that the police have been gathering information on people who have access to the houses in the locality and are well versed with the entry and exit points.

He said the police ask Javed if he had any associates who could be involved in the other cases. The police are likely to conduct psychological profiling of Javed to understand his psyche. “We have not done his psychological profiling, but will do it soon,” said a senior police officer.

Asked whether Javed was a necrophiliac, Dayal said: “There is no way we can confirm that the rape happened after the murder. Javed seems to be a person with a sound mind.”

Meanwhile, the police security deployed in Kurla and neighbouring areas will continue till the cases are cracked. Apart from the security deployment, 27 police teams are investigating the undetected cases, Dayal said.