COIMBATORE: Cops arrested an 18-year-old class 12 student for sexually abusing and murdering a 10-year-old boy, a blood relative, and disposing off the body in a well in Dharmapuri.

The victim, son of a daily wager from a village near Nallampalli, was studying class five in a government school in the same neighbourhood, went missing while playing near his house on Wednesday. A case was filed as the search was futile.

Cops took over the investigation as parents lodged a missing complaint with Adhiyamankottai police station. Based on CCTV footage police zoomed on a locality and spotted a visual which showed the boy accompanying a teenager. The clips showed that the teenager returned alone from the farm.

On suspicion, the police picked the teenage, in his class 12, and conducted an inquiry. The boy made a shocking revelation of sexual abuse and murder. According to his confession, he enticed the little boy to the farm to pluck mangoes. After taking him to a secluded spot, he forcefully sexually assaulted the little boy. Fearing that the boy would reveal it to his parents, the accused allegedly pushed him into a nearby well and returned home alone, as if nothing happened.

Following his confession statement, the fire and rescue personnel rushed to the crime spot and took out the body of the boy from the well, after a search for two hours on Thursday.

The Adhiyamankottai police booked the accused and arrested him under Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (Pocso) and under IPC section 302 for murder besides other relevant sections.

Police filed a case for sexually assaulting and murdering the boy and dumping the body into a well.