The Vijayapura Rural police in Karnataka apprehended an individual accused of murdering his six-year-old son by allegedly throwing him into the Krishna River, driven by doubts regarding the child’s paternity, as reported on Wednesday.

The suspect, named Mallikarjun Harikeri, reportedly took his son, Siddharth, from their home on March 15 under the guise of facilitating his school admission. However, he returned to the village alone several days later, which raised alarms among family members.

When interrogated, Harikeri claimed that he had enrolled Siddharth in a nearby school and left him in a hostel. However, the boy’s mother, Bhagyashree, expressed her desire to bring him home, particularly with his birthday approaching on April 1.

Superintendent of Police Laxman Nimbargi noted that the suspect’s unclear and contradictory statements regarding the child’s location heightened suspicions. This situation intensified on April 1 when the mother insisted on seeing her son, leading the family to file a report for a missing person.

According to police accounts, the suspect attempted to evade authorities shortly after the family reported Siddharth missing, which further escalated suspicions. He was subsequently located and taken into custody.

During questioning, the suspect allegedly admitted that he transported the child to Karad in Maharashtra and threw him into the river due to his doubts about the boy’s parentage, as stated by a senior police official.

Further investigations uncovered that an unnatural death report had already been filed in Karad after the body of an unidentified child was discovered in the river. Images provided by local police confirmed the deceased’s identity as Siddharth.

As a result, the missing person case was reclassified as a murder case. The police confirmed that the suspect has been officially arrested and placed in custody.

Authorities indicated that they are continuing their investigation into the matter.