Police have arrested a 50-year-old man for allegedly raping and killing a seven-year-old girl, whose body was found on Tuesday, a week after she had gone missing in Jaigaon town, bordering Nepal in Alipurduar district of West Bengal.

“The accused does not use a phone. He hardly has any links with his family. As a result, it was difficult to track him. We got information that he worked in a brick kiln in Kishanganj in Bihar and had come home recently. We started looking for him in brick kilns in the area. Today (Wednesday), we were alerted that he was spotted near the Nepal border. That is where we detained him. During interrogation, he admitted to killing the girl. The post-mortem report of the girl will confirm whether she was raped,” said a police officer involved in the case.

The seven-year-old had gone missing on October 15. After she did not return home, her family lodged a case of kidnapping. During the investigation, the police found through CCTV footage that the accused had lured the girl by offering her chowmein.

According to police, the accused was known to the girl and her family as he used to work in a brick kiln near the girl’s house.

“Her body was found behind the bushes in a field in Daldabari, Jaigaon on Tuesday (October 22). An FIR has been filed under BNS sections of kidnapping, murder, and Section 6 of the POCSO Act,” said SDPO Prashant Debnath.

Meanwhile, residents of the area protested in front of the local police station, demanding strict punishment for the accused. “It is a very painful incident. Efforts will be made to ensure that the accused gets severe punishment,” Superintendent of Police (Alipurduar) Y Raghuvanshi said.