Mumbai: Police on Friday night arrested a 25-year-old driver for allegedly sexually assaulting his two-year-old stepdaughter and strangling her to death.

According to the police, the incident took place in a chawl in Mankhurd. The girl’s mother, aged 25, divorced her husband to marry the accused. The victim was her daughter from her first marriage.

On Friday, the girl was alone with the accused at home, while her mother went to work. He sexually assaulted her and strangled her to death, said a police officer from Mankhurd police station.

During the investigation, he confessed that he killed her because he considered her an obstacle in his relationship. Police said the accused even wiped his blood at the spot and tried to wipe away all the evidence.

According to the complaint filed by her mother, after coming home, she found her daughter unconscious with visible injuries. The accused allegedly lied that his injuries were caused by the fall. The couple took her to a hospital where the girl was pronounced dead. When the doctor informed the couple about the injuries in his private parts, the mother confronted the accused. He admitted that he killed her and justified it by saying that his wife could not be involved in their relationship for a long time because of her daughter.

A case was registered against the accused under section 103 (murder), 64 (punishment for rape), 65 (punishment for rape in certain cases) (age below 16 years), 66 (causing death or persistent vegetative state), 238 ( causing disappearance of evidence or furnishing false information) of Bhartiya Nyaya Sanhita (NBS), 2023 and under various sections of Child Protection Act sexual crimes.