New Delhi, Dec. 15: A Delhi court today sentenced a retired assistant commissioner of police to death by hanging in a 19-year-old custody death case.

Terming the offence the “rarest of rare”, additional sessions judge Rajinder Kumar ordered that Rishi Prakash Tyagi (in TV grab) be hanged till death.

Tyagi, who was posted as a station house officer in East Delhi in 1987, was found guilty of having caused the death of Mahinder Kumar, whom he tortured in the Vivek Vihar police station on August 24, 1987.

Kumar succumbed to injuries the next day.

The death sentence can be executed only after it is confirmed by Delhi High Court.

Mahinder was beaten up for allegedly attacking an assistant sub-inspector some days before.

Although the judge handed Tyagi death sentence for the murder, he convicted two of his associates on minor charges. Several others were acquitted on the benefit of doubt.

Of Tyagi’s two associates, K.P. Singh, who was his senior and then the assistant commissioner of police in east Delhi, was given a one-year imprisonment term. Sub-inspector Tej Singh got a three-year prison term for destroying evidence.

One of the accused policemen is absconding and is yet to face trial.

According to the prosecution, the policemen beat up Mahinder along with his friend Raj Kumar, who later escaped from the hospital.

Sources said Raj Kumar was later killed in an encounter.

An FIR was registered against the duo after an inquiry by a magistrate.

But during the investigation, the crime branch found the post-mortem report was fudged. It was found that Mahinder had suffered 42 injuries, but the report mentioned just 13 injuries on his body.