Mumbai: Suspected serial killer nabbed

A man suspected to be involved in the serial rape and murder of three minor girls in Mumbai's suburban Kurla has been arrested, police said on Thursday.

"Javed Ahmed Shaikh has been arrested in connection with the rape and murder of three minor girls in Nehru Nagar in suburban Kurla," Joint Commissioner of Police (Law and Order) Rajnish Seth told PTI.

Javed was on Thursday produced before the Vikhroli metropolitan magistrate, which remanded him to police custody for 14 days.

The police, while seeking Javed's custody, told the court that they needed to take his DNA and blood samples.

The rape and murder of three minor girls in the same area of Nehru Nagar since February this year had created a fear among residents of the area.

On February 9, the body of a five-year-old girl was found in a drain in Nehru Nagar. On March 7, a nine-year-old girl was found raped and murdered on the terrace of a building in the Nehru Nagar police quarters.

In June, the body of an eight-year-old girl was recovered from a dilapidated building in the same area.

After receiving a lot of flak for shoddy investigation, Mumbai Police had in June formed a special team under two joint commissioners of police to probe into the case.