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A 14-year-old boy, who had just appeared for his Class 10 board exams and was reportedly struggling with drug addiction, has been arrested by police for allegedly killing a 44-year-old man during a burglary attempt gone wrong. The shocking crime happened nearly a month ago in the Vigyan Khand area of Gomti Nagar Extension, and the suspect was taken into custody on Sunday.
According to police officials, the teenager had broken into what he believed was an empty house, hoping to steal valuables. However, when he unexpectedly came face-to-face with the man inside, a violent confrontation followed that ended in tragedy.
Break-In Turns Deadly
The incident occurred the day after Holi, on March 15, when the minor scaled a wall and entered the house, assuming it was unoccupied. But to his surprise, he found a man inside—Deepu Srivastava, 44—who, police say, confronted the boy and threatened to inform his family.
In response, a scuffle broke out. Police say the teenager then picked up a brick and hit Srivastava on the head multiple times, killing him. The boy reportedly then wiped away all traces of the crime and fled after locking the house from the outside.
“Postmortem Revealed Head Injuries”
The next day, police received a call about a body found inside the house. “On March 16, the police station received information that a body was lying in a Vigyan Khand house near Madhuban Lawn (at) Gomti Nagar Extension. The man was later identified as Deepu Srivastava, 44. The postmortem report revealed he died due to head injuries,” said Sudhir Awasthi, Station House Officer (SHO) of Gomti Nagar.
At first, police did not suspect foul play. “The SHO claimed that since the deceased was drunk, it was initially assumed that the head injuries were caused by him suffering a fall in an intoxicated state.”
No family member came forward to raise suspicion either. However, things changed after police reviewed CCTV footage from the area.
Hazy CCTV Footage Leads to Breakthrough
Though the security footage was not very clear, investigators noticed a faint image of someone entering the house.
“There were no complaints from the family as well. However, CCTV footage gave a very hazy image of someone entering the house. We apprehended the minor who looked similar to the one seen in the CCTV (footage),” said Awasthi.
Police say that some laborers had been staying in the house, but most of them had left for Holi celebrations—except for Deepu Srivastava. This gave the teenager the impression that the place was empty.
“A few labourers used to live in house where the body was found but all of them had left for Holi, except the victim. Thinking the house is vacant, the boy jumped over the wall on March 15 in a bid to steal some items for drugs. Deepu Srivastava caught the juvenile and threatened to complain his family. In the ensuring scuffle, the accused hit the victim on the head several times with a brick. The man fell in the room and died,” the police statement said.
Bloodstained T-Shirt, Keys Recovered
After weeks of investigation, police zeroed in on the teenage suspect. During questioning, they recovered the house keys and a T-shirt believed to be stained with blood.
“The keys and the T-shirt with possible bloodstains were recovered (later). He was taken into police custody,” the police confirmed.
The boy, who works as a delivery executive, is now in police custody and is being handled as a juvenile under the law. His addiction and age are expected to play a major role in the legal process ahead.
