5-year-old's death: Forensic team says she was thrown with force

Forensic team visits site to reconstruct events of the day 5-year-old Manavi Ingle was flung from her 15th floor home in Byculla; say primary probe suggests she was hurled out with full strength

A forensic team from KEM Hospital and Byculla police recreated the scene of 5-year-old Manavi Ingle’s fall with the help of three dummies that were flung from the 15th floor to study impact. Pics/Bipin Kokate

As the case of 5-year-old Manavi Ingle’s fall from the 15th floor gets more curious, KEM Hospital with Byculla police on Wednesday carried out a drill to reconstruct the events of the fateful day. To that end, forensic experts threw 3 dummy dolls — of the exact weight and height as Manavi’s — to draw some primary conclusions. And analysis has reportedly revealed that the murderer must have thrown Manavi with “all their strength”. Meanwhile, even as the cops have finished grilling the two suspect women, they have questioned their family members too.

Also Read: Mumbai: Mystery shrouds death of 5-year-old who fell from 15th floor

The experiment
The forensic team from KEM Hospital, under Professor Dr Rajesh Dere’s supervision, carried out the reconstruction in the presence of DCP (Zone 3) Pravin Padwal and a team of Byculla police. The tests began at 2 pm and went on till 4.30 pm, which was also videographed and photographed. The basic premise was simple: Three dummies, made from cotton and cloth pieces and bamboo sticks, and of Manavi’s exact build, were flung under different situations and results observed.

Breakdown of result
The first dummy was flung on the assumption of an accidental fall. However, it just dashed against the walls of the building and didn’t stick a landing at all. “If it was an accidental fall, it wouldn’t have landed on parked vehicles,” said a member of the forensic team. The second doll was pushed with moderate strength and that came all the way down, but still hit a few walls of the building. Only the third dummy, which was thrown with strength, landed only 3 feet away from the spot where Manavi had been found. “Primary observation indicates that the girl had been thrown with strength as she was found 12 feet away from the building in the parking area. Today’s reconstruction of events also concluded the same thing. However, we still need some time to evaluate the tests,” added the forensic officer.

Read Story: Mumbai: 5-year-old's post mortem reveals bruises as cops question two neighbours

Cops say
Meanwhile, on day 3, questioning of suspects was still underway. After questioning two suspected women, the cops started grilling their family members too. Sources said that families, which had ongoing disputes with the Ingle family, was brought face-to-face with them and questioned. DCP Pravin Padwal told mid-day, “We are still investigating as interrogation of suspects is going on and we haven’t reached any conclusion as of now.” Crime branch unit 3 is also carrying out a parallel investigation.

Flashback
5-year-old Manavi Ingle was thrown by unknown persons from the 15th floor of her 22-storey highrise on Monday afternoon and died before she could be taken to KEM Hospital. A detailed post-mortem was later carried out by KEM Hospital, which revealed that she had fractured her skull and leg, and had some bruises on her body. Doctors have also taken vaginal swabs to check if there was sexual assault.

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