CCTV video has emerged showing the final
movements of a British tourist before she was brutally raped and
murdered in an Indian holiday resort.
Danielle
McLaughlin was seen carrying a bag and walking along a road in Goa with
an unknown man behind her in the grainy footage.
The
clip was found shortly after the
28-year-old was found in a pool of
blood on Tuesday morning after she had attended Holi celebrations at
Palolem beach. Her killer reportedly sexually assaulted her and
'disfigured' her face with a beer bottle.
At
one point in the short clip, Ms McLaughlin, who lived in Liverpool,
looks back over her shoulder as she is walking along. It is not yet
clear where exactly the footage was captured.
A local man, 24-year-old Vikat Bhagat, who police said was a known thief, has been arrested on suspicion of murder.
WATCH THE FOOTAGE BELOW...
Backpacker Ms McLauilin, who arrived in
Goa on February 23, had been at Agonda beach and Patnem beach with
friends during her first fortnight in the state.
On Monday night she celebrated the Holi festival at nearby Palolem beach, popular with Western tourists.
Her
badly beaten body was discovered by a farmer at Deobag Beach about four
miles away on Tuesday morning. She had suffered extensive injuries to
her face and head.
Police have arrested Bhagat, a convicted
criminal, and he has reportedly confessed, saying he sexually assaulted
her and disfigured her with a beer bottle so people would not be able to
identify her.
Superintendent of Police
Uttam Raut Dessai, from Sanguem Police Station, and is helping the
investigation, said: 'This is a murder case that was registered at
Cancona Police Station yesterday.
'We
received information from our sources that there was a boy named
VikatBhagat, 23, a rowdy and a boy known to police in Goa was spotted
with her in the afternoon and evening.
'He was then brought in and interrogated. He has today confessed to sexually assaulting her and killing her with a beer bottle.The girl arrived at one restaurants with Vikat on a scooter. He has confessed to the crime but is now trying to involve others.
 |
| Bhagat, 23, confessed to the killing, saying he sexually assaulted Ms McLaughlin before disfiguring her face with a beer bottle |
'We do not believe there were more involved in the crime but our investigation will make sure of this.
'We believe he took her clothes so that the body was not recognized by anyone.
'And in order to hide her identity, he tried to destroy her face with a beer bottle because people had seen him with Danielle.
'He was trying to conceal his crime but ultimately a murder is a murder.'
He added the post mortem will take place once the police get permission from the embassy.
On February 22 Ms McLaughlin revealed she was 'off on another adventure' to Goa.
She
wrote: 'Thank you to all my friends and family for making home so
special and always looking after me. I am very grateful and the luckiest
person I know... Off on another adventure.'
Under
the same post yesterday, which included a sunset landscape picture, a
friend wrote: 'Beautiful sunset for a beautiful soul'.
Her
mother, Andrea Brannigan, said her daughter would be 'sadly missed' as
200 locals and foreign nationals gathered in Goa to pay tribute to Ms
McLaughlin.
Police said yesterday that
they had arrested a suspect named as Vikat Bhagat who they said was a
petty thief. He is said to have made a confession.
Sammy
Tavares, Deputy Superintendent of Police had earlier revealed that the
body was found 'lying in a pool of blood without clothes and there were
injuries to the head and face'.
 |
| At the vigil on Wednesday night, 200 local and foreign nationals gathered with flowers to pay tribute to Ms McLaughlin in Goa |
Bhagat was arrested in March 2014 for targeting foreigners in a string of burglaries in the area.
One
British holidaymaker revealed a thief had sneaked into their holiday
villa through a balcony and taken a laptop, two mobile phones and a
portable hard drive worth around £1,620.
Another told how he had taken a laptop, camera, mobile phone and CDs worth more than £1,100
Following the reported crimes, police watched the flats and caught Bhagat who had been found guilty of seven previous offences.
A
worker at the Dreamcatcher resort where Danielle had reportedly visited
the day before her murder said he knew of the arrested man and that he
was 'the biggest thief of the area.'
'He
steals from foreigners only - break into their rooms and loot
everything. He scares outsiders who have set up their business here. He
is a powerful person, by powerful I mean he scares people using weapon.
He is a nuisance for the society.'
(Daily Mail)
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