Scarlett swab report deals blow to cops

Scarlett swab report deals blow to cops
Preetu Nair | TNN

Panaji: British teenager Scarlett Keeling may not have been raped on the night before her death. Swab samples taken from her mouth and vagina have tested negative for the presence of sperms, top police officials told TOI on Tuesday.
This deals a severe blow to the prosecution case. The police on Saturday had filed a provisional charge-sheet against the main accused under various sections including rape and murder.
SP (North) Bosco George confirmed the test reports have arrived from the Central Forensic Science Laboratory, Hyderabad, but refused to comment on the findings.
The police claim that a drugged Scarlett was sexually assaulted by prime accused Samson D’Souza and then left in water on Anjuna beach, leading to her death. The police had arrested Samson based on another accused Placido Carvalho alias Shana Boy’s statement that he had seen a half naked (without his trousers and underwear) Samson lying atop the minor girl and in a position of having sex at 4.45 am. Even key witness Michael Mannion aka Masala Mike, a Britisher, had confirmed this.
Later Shana was also arrested allegedly for administering drugs with the common intent to commit rape and murder. He was released on bail by the Children’s Court as there was absolutely no material to indicate that he had given Ecstasy tablets or cocaine to Scarlett nor was there any material to indicate his nexus with the offences of rape and murder.
The provisional 287-page charge-sheet filed by the Anjuna police seeks to try Samson and Placido under sections 302 (murder), 376 (rape), 201 (disappearance of evidence), 328 (causing hurt by means of poison) and 109 (abetment) of the Indian Penal Code and under section 8(1) 2 of Goa Children’s Act.
The police have also submitted a list of 87 witnesses to be examined in the case. The charge-sheet also alleges that the deceased was administered drugs and raped before the murder and that she was drowned in the sea on February 18, 2008.

2008 Jun 04 Times Of India Goa