Evil In The World? Child Murdered In Human Sacrifice In India To Try And Save Paralyzed Man

black magic — A ceremonial candle is lit during a Candomble ceremony on Jan. 24, 2016, in Itaborai, Brazil. Getty Images

A 10-year-old girl who went missing in the Indian state of Karnataka last week was murdered in a case of human sacrifice, police said Monday. Four people have been arrested for the crime, including a 33-year-old woman who claimed to be a sorceress, according to The Times of India.

Naseema Taj was alleged to have told two siblings of a paralyzed man in the city of Bengaluru that sacrificing and murdering the girl was the only way to undo “black magic” that caused him to suffer a paralytic stroke in February. The brother and sister of the paralyzed man were also arrested along with a 17-year-old who was accused of helping to abduct the girl.

The four people arrested confessed to the crime, police said.

“There are a few more people who have abetted the crime,” senior police officer B Ramesh told BBC Hindi. We are investigating it from all angles. So more arrests cannot be ruled out.”

The murdered girl, Ayesha Mohammed Rafiq, was the daughter of the arrested siblings’ neighbor and cousin. According to police, she was abducted after Mohammad Wasil, 42, and his sister Rashidunisa, 36, approached a local black magic practitioner. Taj told the family that their brother would die unless a 10-year-old girl was sacrificed in 45 days.

Last week, the girl was taken from her home and kept in a remote property owned by the brother. The following day they performed black magic rituals on her day and night while the paralyzed man looked on. Later, they strangled her with a ribbon she used to tie her hair and disposed of her body in a black bag.

The body and materials used for the human sacrifice were later discovered when dogs sniffing the bag drew the attention of a passerby.

“The crowd panicked when they saw camphor, turmeric and some other material near the body. Villagers say the girl has been killed by a black magician,” police said.

Bengaluru has been described as a hotbed of black magicians and sorcerers with people paying up to $1,500 for services.