POKHARA: Police in Kaski district have arrested a man on charges of raping and murdering 10-year-old Shreeya Sunar whose body was found in Pumdibhumdi area of Pokhara Metropolitan City-22 on Tuesday.

The arrestee has been identified as 27-year-old Kusum Paudel, a local resident living in the victim's neighbourhood.

According to District Police Office, Kaski Spokesperson, Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Rabindra Man Gurung, Paudel has confessed to the murder of the minor girl.

Sunar had gone missing after school hours at around 5:30 pm on Monday. Her body was found in a bush some 300 metres away from her house on Tuesday morning. The body bore injuries on the neck, head, stomach and other parts which according to preliminary police investigation has been caused by stones.

Paudel has reportedly confessed that he dragged the minor to the nearby bush and raped her before strangling her to death. Further, he dumped her body and again pelted the body with stones to confirm that she was dead.

Moreover, the postmortem report revealed that the minor was killed by being hit with stones on her head after being raped, a source at Pokhara Institute of Health and Sciences, Western Regional Hospital said.

Meanwhile, police are preparing to hold a press meet at the DPO to discuss the nature of the crime.

It has been learned that the victim had been living in her maternal uncle's home for a few years.

The perpetrator was reportedly under the influence of alcohol and marijuana when he committed the crime. He is known to be a married man with two children.