Patna, July 23: Amid the ongoing probe into the alleged rape of over 40 girls in a state shelter home in Bihar's Muzaffarpur, another horrific incident of sexual assault has been reported from the district. A nine-year-old girl in Paru village was gangraped and murdered on Sunday.

Along with the nine-year-old, her brother, aged seven, was also murdered for attempting to resist the rape attempt. Based upon the complaint registered by the victims' parents, a manhunt has been launched to nab three accused.

The father of the deceased claimed one of the accused was staying on his land until a few days ago. He had recently evicted him from his land, which led to a heated verbal duel.

The trio could not be traced by the time this report was first published. Senior superintendent of police Harpreet Kaur said a police team has been launched to conduct a search operation in the neighbouring villages.

Kaur said the victims had left their homes early on Sunday along with the cattle. While the bovines returned by late evening, the children did not. The parents, along with the villagers, launched a rigorous search operation. The deceased were subsequently found floating in the Baya river.

Their bodies have been sent for autopsy. The post-mortem report will unearth more leads to crackdown on the culprits, the police said.

Bihar has witnessed a spurt in crime cases in 2018, with 127 incidents reported in the first three months. The numbers almost doubled to 250 by June-end this year, the government records said.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 23, 2018 05:04 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).