Panaji: Giving him benefit of doubt, Goa`s
"dupatta killer" Mahanand Naik was acquitted in two murder
cases on Wednesday by a local court here.
With this, he has been acquitted in seven cases so far.
Mahanand Naik, also known as the dupatta killer, has
been booked for killing 18 women spanning 15 years from 1995
till last year, when he was arrested in a rape case.
Principal Session Judge Nutan Sardessai acquitted him
today in the murder cases of Darshana Naik (21) and Sunita
Gaonkar (31), giving him benefit of doubt. Darshana was killed
in 1994 and Sunita in 2003.
As per the chargesheet, Mahanand Naik had killed Darshana
at Bambolim in September 1994. Her body was found abandoned
near Goa Medical College and Hospital near here.
In the second case, the police had charged him of killing
Sunita in January 2003. Sunita`s body is yet to be traced.
Police claimed he had killed the women with an intention
to rob them of their gold ornaments.
As per the police, he used to strangulate them by taking
them on a date at an isolated place.
Mahanand was arrested in 2009 by Ponda police after a
23-year-old alleged that she was raped by him.
During the interrogation, Mahanand allegedly confessed
to a series of murders.
PTI
