Hanging of convicts sends strong message, says cop who probed Nirbhaya case

The execution of the convicts in the Nirbhaya gang-rape and murder case will send a strong message to the society that criminals will not be spared and will be brought to justice, said ACP Rajender Singh, who was a part of the team probing the case.

All four death row convicts - Akshay Singh Thakur, Pawan Gupta, Vinay Sharma, and Mukesh Singh - were hanged till death at Tihar Jail around 5:30 am this morning.

"This will send a message to the society that those who commit such crimes will not be spared. We investigated the case considering the gravity of the matter even before public pressure was built in the case," Singh told ANI on Friday.

He said that the police took cognizance of the matter immediately considering the gravity of the case and inputs from the witness.

"A team was formed as soon as possible and we started taking action the same night. Firstly, the probe was conducted by a police station based team then an SIT was constituted, which had several good police officers on board," Singh said.

Singh said that the accused were identified by five or six different ways.

"In this case, we used evidence like teeth bytes for the first time. DNA samples were properly collected and matched. We also made a digital route of the entire incident," he added.

"Police officers were also available, not only during the probe or arrest but all through the case. We did not let the complainant or witnesses loose their confidence. The court had also commended the investigation," he said.

The officer informed that the investigation done in the case is taught to trainee police officers at Delhi Police training centers.

"We had formed emotional bondage with the family of the victim after our officers spent time with them at the hospital during the treatment of the victim. That feeling impelled us to do a more concrete investigation," Singh said.

The case pertains to the brutal gang-rape and killing of a 23-year-old paramedical student in a moving bus on the night of December 16, 2012, by six people including a juvenile in the national capital. The woman had died at a Singapore hospital a few days later.

One of the adults accused had allegedly committed suicide in the prison during the trial, while the juvenile was released from a correction home after a period of three years.