Nayagarh, July 8: A 24-year-old man was allegedly abducted and beaten to death in an incident linked to a suspected Mov in Nayagada district, with an investigation launched by the police and several people for questioning.

The victim, Abhimanyu Sahu of Dalimbamada village under Nayagarh Sadar police station, was allegedly kidnapped on Sunday evening while visiting a grocery shop. According to his family, he was taken to a village club, assaulted with heavy wrenches and later dumped into the Dahuka River in an attempt to destroy evidence.

Police recovered the body from the river on Monday and seized a bloodstained wrench believed to have been used in the attack. A scientific team collected forensic evidence, while sniffer dogs were deployed, but failed to trace the suspects.

The victim's family alleged that they had been socially ostracised by the village for nearly four years over a land dispute and claimed Abhimanyu was targeted after a village meeting, described as a kangaroo court, was held a day before the killing.

A team was formed under the supervision of the Nayagarh SP. Police have arrested 8 youths from the village. The court trial will be held today. The other accused will be arrested soon/

Speaking with ANI, Subhendu Patra, Superintendent of Police, Nayagarh, said that the incident occurred inside a local community hall, after which the perpetrators allegedly disposed of the victim's body in a nearby river.

The SP noted that although the information regarding the crime reached authorities with a delay, local officers moved swiftly once the details were pieced together.

He said that the police dispatched a specialised scientific team to the crime scene to secure physical evidence, adding that the authorities are engaged in the process of verifying the specific roles of the eight individuals currently in custody before officially forwarding the case for prosecution.

"Yesterday, in the evening hours of 5th July, we got information that a few villagers of Dalimbamuda assaulted a local youth called Abhimanyu Sahu; they did it in a local community hall and then they disposed of the body in the nearby river. So, but somehow this information was transmitted at a very delayed manner and but whatever information the local inspector could piece in, after that they immediately took action of the case, they ensured that this few accused individuals who are directly involved in the case they're apprehended and also sent the scientific team to the spot and collect whatever necessary evidence that was available on the ground," he said.

"So far we have in this case found eight accused, we have detained them as well and after verifying their role we're going to forward them and we're also trying to ensure that these kind of incident where whenever there is a violent incident that sufficient precautionary measures are taken by the local officers to increase preventive mechanisms in the ground and we've anticipating that there is involvement of more accused persons as well and we're going to arrest them soon," he added.

Further details are awaited as the investigation is underway. (ANI)