Teen babysitter tortured, beaten to death in Chennai; POCSO Act invoked

Chennai | A 15-year-old girl, employed as a babysitter was tortured and beaten to death here and six persons, including the couple who hired her have been arrested, police said on Sunday.

Though the POCSO Act has also been invoked by police, related information is not immediately known.

Police said telltale marks of torture, injuries, were found in the girl's body, who hailed from Thanjavur. Probe revealed that the child endured such treatment for about three months and she died after she sustaining assault on October 31, 2024.

An official city police release said the couple, Niveda alias Nazia (30) and her husband Mohammed Nishad (36) were arrested.

Nishad's sister Seema Begum (39), the couple's friend Lokesh (26), his wife Jayasakti (24) and a 40-year old domestic help, Maheswari have also been arrested.

The six accused have been lodged in jail here after they were produced before a court which remanded them in judicial custody.

Charges under relevant laws include those for offences under the POCSO Act and murder.

The 15-year-old girl had been working as a babysitter since December 2023 in Nishad's household.

On Saturday, police had indicated that wounds may have been due to branding using iron box. The teenager, initially believed to be a domestic help, had been found dead under mysterious circumstances.