Sunday, September 2, 2007

A Day Off From School: Something To Really Die For

Three boarding school students are accused of strangling two small boys in the hope that classes would be suspended after the deaths, according to police in Mumbai.

The three students, ages 12 and 13, confessed to strangling an 8-year-old boy and his 5-year-old brother so that their school would close down, said S. Sethi, a police officer in the Jalna district, about 200 miles east of Mumbai.

"When questioned, the boys said they knew this school gave a holiday when a child had died last year and thought they could get another holiday this year," Sethi said. "They looked happy when they were being sent away from school," investigating officer Shirish Rathod said. "It was as if the three had finally got the long-desired holiday."

During questioning, the boys "narrated the entire sequence of events quite vividly. It is as if they are proud of their act," Rathod said.

Sethi said the three lured the two brothers then dragged their bodies into an unused restroom. Authorities found the bodies of the boys after their 9-year-old sister reported them missing the next morning, Sethi said. He said an autopsy confirmed the children were strangled.

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