Bodies in drain: 'They went in to steal cables'

New Delhi: A 23-year-old man was arrested after two decomposed bodies were recovered from a drain opposite the India International Centre here, police said on Wednesday. The accused has been identified as Mohammad Ateeque, a resident of Araria district in Bihar, they said, adding he works as a daily-wage labourer.

Deputy Commissioner of Police (New Delhi) Amrutha Guguloth said they received a call around 6.17 pm on Tuesday where the caller said he saw two bodies in a drain opposite India International Centre, Lodhi Estate in central Delhi. Police reached the spot and met Mohammad Ashab and other relatives of the victims, who identified them as Khurshid, 31, and Sajjad, 34, from Araria in Bihar.

Ashab said he got information that Khurshid and Sajjad, both living in Kotla, were missing for the last three to four days. Ashab went to Kotla where he met Ateeque and Alauddin, roommates of the deceased. He enquired about Khurshid and Sajjad but Ateeque and Alauddin did not give any satisfactory reply, the DCP said.

When he told them that he will inform the police, Ateeque took Ashab to the spot from where the two bodies were recovered, police said.

During investigation, it was found that on Friday around 5.53 pm, three persons visited the spot in an auto-rickshaw. Two of them entered inside the drain, while the third person waited outside, Guguloth said.

Later, the third person too entered the drain and came out after a few minutes. He then covered the drain with the drain lid and fled the spot. That third person was identified as Ateeque. He was taken into custody and on interrogation, he confessed to the crime, the DCP said. The accused said both the deceased persons entered the drain in order to steal underground cable wires and died inside it, police said.