Haridwar: Surendra Koli, the accused in the sensational Nithari killings case, has committed suicide by hanging himself in Uttarakhand’s Haridwar, police said on Friday.
His body was found at a tea stall.
The incident reportedly took place opposite the Lalmata Temple on Sapt Sarovar Road in the Bhupatwala area of north Haridwar.
According to reports, Koli had been running a tea stall in the area for the past few days. His body was found hanging from a rope inside the stall.
Upon receiving the information, a team from the Saptarishi police outpost arrived at the scene, took possession of the body, and initiated an investigation.
Police stated that the deceased has been identified as Koli, a resident of Mangrukhal village in the Bhikiasain area of the state’s Almora district.
The police have informed his family members, and all aspects of the incident are being investigated.
In November last year, Koli, who was given the sobriquet “Butcher of Nithari”, was set free by the Supreme Court, which allowed his curative petition, giving a formal closure to a saga of botched-up probe and media trial built on theories of cannibalism.
The 2006 Nithari killings captured public attention after the disappearance of minors from the village was linked to the discovery of human remains in a drain outside businessman Mohinder Singh Pandher’s home in Noida Sector-31, which became infamous as “House of Horrors”.
The investigation into the case that involved allegations of abduction of children and young women, and horrifying claims of rape, cannibalism, and organ theft, had culminated in 19 cases, some of which even resulted in Koli’s conviction and sentencing to death.
Koli, a domestic worker, and his employer, Pandher, were initially convicted in the case. A total of 19 cases were lodged against the two in 2007. The CBI filed closure reports in three cases because of insufficient evidence. Koli was found not guilty in three of the 16 remaining cases, and his death sentence in one case was changed to life imprisonment.
(IANS)
