The accused (faces covered) in custody at Sector 11 police station in Chandigarh on Monday. (Express photo by Sahil Walia) The accused (faces covered) in custody at Sector 11 police station in Chandigarh on Monday. (Express photo by Sahil Walia) Three youths were arrested by Chandigarh Police on Monday for murdering a 22-year-old delivery man, who was found dead with around 40 stab wounds at a park near the dividing road of Sector 15 and Sector 24 on Saturday morning. The accused, identified as Suraj alias Addha (18), Akhilesh alias Diva (19) and Ram Ashish alias Kalu (18), all residents of EWS Colony, Dhanas, have been booked under Section 302 (murder) of the Indian Penal Code at Sector 11 Police Station in Chandigarh. During interrogation, the three youths confessed to the crime. They will be produced in court on Tuesday. But the weapon used in the crime is yet to be found. Chandigarh SSP Nilambri Vijay Jagdale said the three murdered Sandeep Yadav following an old enmity. Preliminary investigation revealed that on October 4, the birthday of Sandeep’s sister, his younger brother Mandeep was distributing sweets in the locality, where Suraj’s elder brother Pradeep was also standing. Since Mandeep had an old grudge with Pradeep, he did not offer him sweets which angered the latter and they both got into a heated argument. Mandeep also hit Pradeep with a knife who suffered a minor injury below the eye. Soon, their friends calmed things down and the matter was resolved without informing the police. On October 12, Suraj, the younger brother of Pradeep, was out with friends, Akhilesh and Ram Ashish, at Sector 17 and they were drunk. The three, residents of the same locality as Sandeep, met him by coincidence at Sector 17, where they had an altercation with him over the spat on October 4. Then a scuffle ensued and a passer-by informed the police following which the four fled. The three then met Sandeep near Hotel Parkview at Sector 24 and asked him to park his motorcycle. Then, they took Sandeep near the dividing road of sectors 15 and 24 on the pretext of talking things out and allegedly hit him with an ice-breaking tool that left him lying in a pool of blood. Sandeep’s body was found at a park in Sector 15 the next morning on October 13. The SSP said that on a thorough inspection of the body, multiple wounds were found on Sandeep’s neck, chest and back. In the post-mortem report, more than 40 stab injuries on the chest and neck with a pointed weapon were found that brought about the death of the youth. The SSP added that during the investigation, all the angles were probed and the old enmity of the victim was found with the accused. On a tip-off, a check post was erected near the Dhanas lake turn and the three were arrested while riding an Activa scooter. According to the police, the three are bachelors and working as waiters with a private firm. Among the three, Suraj had been booked in a criminal case earlier when he was a juvenile. For all the latest Chandigarh News, download Indian Express App

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