LUCKNOW: In a major crackdown, the Lucknow police tracked a rape accused, Deepak Verma, 24, and neutralised him in an encounter near the Sugarcane Institute in the Devi Kheda area on the outskirts of the state capital early Friday morning.Deepak, who had allegedly raped a two-and-a-half-year-old girl under the Alambagh metro station just hours earlier, was gunned down after he opened fire on a police team that had zeroed in on him. He sustained two bullet injuries in the chest and later died during treatment.The heinous crime occurred in the early hours of Friday when the accused allegedly kidnapped the toddler, who was sleeping with her parents under the Alambagh metro station. Gagging her mouth, he lifted her and carried her towards the lift area around 2:30 am, where he raped her.After the girl fainted due to severe injuries, the accused, presuming her dead, fled the scene. A handicapped passerby later found the child lying unconscious and bleeding and alerted nearby residents and her parents.Soon after the incident, a 3.55-second CCTV footage from the metro premises surfaced. It showed Deepak arriving on a white Honda Activa, pressing the lift button, and then crossing the road to pick up the girl. He is seen lifting her and taking her towards the lift where the assault took place.Police said the footage suggested the accused had been monitoring the location and assessing the situation multiple times before striking.
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