11th death sentence for Koli for Nithari murders

GHAZIABAD: Surinder

Koli

, a key accused in the Nithari murder case, was sentenced to death by a CBI court in the city on Saturday.


The court was hearing the 11th case of the 16 filed by the CBI against the accused. On Friday, Koli had been convicted in the case and another accused, Maninder Singh Pandher had been acquitted. In the other 10 cases, too, Koli has been sentenced to death.

On Saturday, the court proceedings began around 1pm. The court said it was inhuman and a rarest of the rare case. “Koli has been found guilty of charges under sections 376 (rape), 511 (punishment for attempting to commit offences punishable with imprisonment for life or other imprisonment), 302 (murder), 364 (kidnapping) and 201 (causing the disappearance of evidence or false information) of the

Indian Penal Code

. A penalty of Rs 1.2 lakh has been imposed on him,” the court said.

On January 21, 2005, one of the victims, a 10-year-old girl, had left her house to go to a tailor but when she did not return, her father started looking for her. Later, he lodged a police complaint. On June 23, 2005, the police lodged a missing person’s diary in the case.

In 2006, skeletal remains of 16 persons, mostly children, were found in the backyard of Pandher’s house in Sector 31 area of Noida. Thereafter, both Koli and Pandher were arrested and sent to jail on December 19, 2006.

The CBI took over the probe in 2007, and during the course of investigation it was found that Koli used to lure women and girls to Pandher’s house. According to the CBI, he had lured 19 women whom he had raped and murdered, before dismembering their body parts and disposing them in nearby drains.

So far, Koli has been found guilty in 11 cases and has been sentenced to death in all of them. The CBI has filed 16 chargesheets out of the total 19 cases against Koli and Pandher.

Stay updated with the latest news on Times of India. Don't miss daily games like Crossword, Sudoku, and Mini Crossword.