Paradip, Aug. 19: A 21-year-old man allegedly raped and later murdered his minor sister at a village, sending shock waves across Jagatsinghpur district.

The accused killed his 16-year-old sister by hitting her on the head with an iron rod. As the hapless victim bled to death, the unrepentant brother packed the body in a gunny bag and dumped it in a nearby water body.

The accused, Chandan Pradhan, from Kathakota village in Kujang police limits allegedly committed the crime on August 12 afternoon. His parents, who are labourers in Paradip, had left home in the morning.

"Finding her sister alone, Chandan allegedly raped her. As there are no houses on the neighbourhood, nobody could hear his sister's cry for help. After raping her, Chandan made up his mind to kill his sibling since she threatened to disclose his misdeeds," said Kujang police station inspector Bichitranand Samal.

"After murdering her, the accused washed the blood stains from the floor and bundled the body in a bag and carried it on a bicycle. Later, he dumped the body in the Paika river, located about 2 kilometres from their house," said Samal.

"After dumping the body, Chandan returned home and informed his parents that his sister had gone to a friend's house. Unable to trace their daughter, they later lodged a missing complaint on August 13," said Samal.

"After the victim's decomposed body was retrieved from the riverbed, we suspected foul play," Samal said.

The victim's brother had later emerged as the prime suspect as some people had seen Chandan in the afternoon of August 12 carrying a gunny bag on his bicycle. On suspicion, the police detained Chandan and interrogated him and he confessed to have committed the crime.

"Show of such abnormal sexual behaviour is either directly or indirectly related to mental illnesses. People afflicted with hypomania resort to perpetrate such act of perversion," said Snehansu Dey, a psychiatrist.