In connection with the case of the beheading of a teenage girl, Karnataka Police discovered the severed head of the beheaded minor girl on a mango tree today, Saturday, May 11, in the state's Kodagu district.
The accused 32-year-old Prakash aka Omkarappa hacked the victim, 16-year-old Meena, to death on Thursday, May 9, after their engagement was cancelled. The horrific tragedy occurred in Surlabbi, near Kumabaragadige village in Kodagu district, according to an IANS report.
The accused used a machete to behead the woman and then fled into the forest with her severed head.
Previously, there were claims that the accused died by suicide by hanging from a tree after committing the offence. However, authorities stated that the accused did not die by suicide and was apprehended in Somwarpet town in Kodagu district.
“The accused was hiding in the forest,” the police said. The accused, Prakash then led the police to the spot where he had kept the severed head of the girl after the preliminary investigation.
Further, he told police that he was distraught after his engagement with the victim was cancelled. He confessed that he committed the crime after a heated argument with the girl in the forest.
According to the police, the head was kept on a branch of a mango tree 300 metres from where he killed the girl. The dog squad and police officials who had begun the search operation on Friday, May 10, were unable to locate the severed head.
“The severed head has been recovered without any major damage,” the police said.
The preliminary investigation also revealed that the accused had premeditated the crime. He had visited the girl's home and sent her two brothers to his village. Later, he barged into the house while the girl was alone with her parents and committed the crime.
Prakash also targeted the victim's parents. The victim was enjoying the completion of her Class X Board examinations when the tragedy happened.
According to sources, the man became upset after the two families agreed to postpone their wedding until the girl reached the age of majority.
The engagement was postponed following the intervention of the Women and Child Welfare Department on Thursday, May 9. Following the development, the victim and the accused had a phone chat. The victim had told the accused that she would not marry until she was 18, which incensed him.
The department asserted that they obtained an agreement from the victim's parents not to marry off their daughter until she was 18. It acquired information on the engagement after receiving a call to its helpline.
