Thane, 27 April

The police have detained a minor boy in connection with the death of a 12-year-old girl in Navi Mumbai, an official said on Sunday.

The girl was found in a severely injured state at the base of a hill late on Friday night and was rushed to a hospital, where doctors declared her dead, senior inspector Abasaheb Patil of the Turbhe police station said.

He said the girl's family had reported her missing from their home in the Shiravane MIDC area earlier in the day, and the police registered a case of kidnapping and launched a probe.

They added section 103(2) (murder) of the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita in the first information report following the child's death, the official said.

Based on a tip-off, the police detained a 17-year-old boy last seen with the victim, and during interrogation, he confessed to the crime, he said.

According to the police, the accused teen allegedly lured the girl to an isolated spot at the foot of the hills on the pretext of taking a selfie but driven by anger stemming from a previous quarrel with her, the boy reportedly assaulted her and attacked her with a large stone.

The boy fled the scene after the attack, the official said, adding that the teen will be produced before the Juvenile Justice Board.