Offered shelter, then hit them with metal rod: Gujarat man rapes, murders eloping couple

AHMEDABAD: Kheda district police have solved a brutal rape and double murder case within hours of the crime coming to light. A 30-year-old man, who offered shelter to a young couple eloping for marriage, ended up sexually assaulting the woman and killing the couple with blunt force at a remote farm near Mahisa village on Monday night.
The woman and her boyfriend fled their homes on Tuesday as her marriage was scheduled for Thursday by her family, and she was in love with another man. The investigation began when villagers discovered the bodies of an unidentified man and woman early Wednesday morning in a field near Mahisa village of Mahudha taluka. Both victims suffered severe head injuries, and early signs pointed to a horrific crime.

Within hours, Mahudha police registered the case under BNS Sections 103(1) for murder. Senior police officers formed 10 specialised teams comprising cops from local crime branch (LCB), Special Operations Group (SOG) and Mahudha police officials.

The teams conducted ground-level surveillance, scanned over 150 CCTV cameras across Dakor, Alina and Mahisa, and cross-verified local offender data.
The breakthrough came from the CCTV footage in Dakor, which showed the couple travelling with a third person on a motorbike. The number plate led police to identify the suspect as Prakash Ninama, a resident of Khijalpur, originally from Vandeli village in Panchmahal.
"After we got the CCTV lead, we used intelligence and surveillance to trace the suspect. Based on a tip from a confidential informant, he was arrested from his residence in Khijalpur on Thursday," said inspector Keval Vekaria of Kheda LCB, who led the arrest.
In his confession, Ninama revealed that he met the couple at Dakor. They told him they had eloped and were looking for a place to stay. Pretending to help, he offered shelter and took them to an isolated farm. "He told them he had a place to rest for the night and would arrange a better stay the next day," said inspector Vekaria. "But around midnight, he hit the man with a blunt object, likely a stick or metal rod. When the woman tried to react, he struck her too, causing both to fall unconscious. Then he raped her as she lay bleeding and unresponsive."
According to sources, the woman may have been raped while unconscious or already dead. Forensic teams are verifying this detail. The accused also admitted to stuffing tobacco from the field into the woman's private parts before fleeing the scene. The bodies were discovered the next morning by locals tending to cattle.
Ninama is now in custody, and further legal proceedings are underway. Police confirmed that the woman was supposed to be married this week. The victims, both in their mid-20s, left home days earlier.
"This was a premeditated, cold-blooded crime. He took advantage of their vulnerability and acted with cruelty," added inspector Vekaria.
(The victim's identity has not been revealed to protect her privacy as per Supreme Court directives on cases related to sexual assault)