Two days after the semi-naked body of a woman sarpanch from Raigad was found, the police arrested her 30-year-old nephew for murder and rape.
The body of the 41-year-old was found on Monday evening by passersby. “Prima facie it looked like there was sexual assault also and we had added section 376 of the IPC along with 302 (murder),” said sub divisional police officer (SDPO) Nilesh Tambe, Mahad division.
The police used sniffer dogs and started questioning family members. During interrogation, the accused confessed to the crime, police said. The victim is a distant aunt and both used to fight over trivial family matters.
On the day of the crime, he had gone to talk to her about some issue which led to a fight. The victim had gone to collect wood which she was carrying on her head. “In a fit of rage, he pulled out a stick from the bunch and hit her on the head. We suspect she was dragged into the bushes and sexually assaulted after he collapsed,” the police said.
