Greater Noida man kills 13-year-old son, dumps body in pond to frame relatives
Synopsis
Key Takeaways
A man in Greater Noida allegedly murdered his 13-year-old son and dumped the body in a pond in Sirsa village, reportedly to falsely implicate relatives in a long-running property dispute, police said on Friday, 8 May. The body was recovered during a search operation launched after the boy was reported missing the previous day.
How the Case Unfolded
According to police, a missing person complaint was filed on 7 May regarding the disappearance of the son of Pradeep Bhati, a resident of the Sirsa village area under Kasna Kotwali police station. A special team was constituted given the seriousness of the matter, and investigators initially pursued the angle that relatives had kidnapped the child — a claim made by the father himself.
However, investigators grew suspicious when Bhati repeatedly changed his statements during questioning. Police then scanned CCTV footage from surrounding areas and conducted ground-level interviews with local residents and children to piece together the sequence of events.
Body Recovered from Village Pond
The missing boy's body was subsequently recovered from a pond in Sirsa village, sending shockwaves through the local community. Based on technical evidence and sustained interrogation, police took the child's father, Pradeep Bhati, into custody. The body has been sent for post-mortem examination, and legal proceedings are underway.
Motive: A Family Property Dispute
Preliminary investigation revealed that a property dispute had been festering within the family for a considerable period. Police suspect that Bhati allegedly killed his son as part of a calculated conspiracy to frame his relatives in connection with the dispute — a deeply disturbing dimension to what is already a shocking crime. Officials noted that the accused made repeated attempts to mislead investigators, but a combination of technical surveillance, CCTV evidence, and witness statements helped crack the case.
Investigation Ongoing
Police are continuing a detailed probe into the exact manner of the killing, the precise sequence of events, and other technical aspects of the crime. This case underscores a troubling pattern of intra-family violence linked to property disputes in the National Capital Region, where such disputes have previously escalated to serious crimes. Authorities have indicated that further arrests or legal action cannot be ruled out as the investigation progresses.