CITING GAPS in the investigation in the 2008 death of British teenager Scarlett Keeling in Goa, the Children’s Court said in its 107-page verdict while acquitting the two accused last week that the victim’s mother, Fiona Mackeown, and her advocate, Vikram Varma, had monitored the probe “at every stage”.
Giving specific instances where she felt that the sanctity of a fair investigation had been breached, Judge Vandana Tendulkar noted in the verdict: “As seen from the testimony of PW (prosecution witness) 28, the Advocate Vikram Varma had expressed doubt about the first autopsy…. For meeting in the office of SP North Goa, PW 15 was present with Advocate Vikram
“PW 25 was directed to conduct discreet inquiry in the locality to find if there was any foul play in the death…. Thus the entire process of probe is seen, monitored by the mother of the victim and her advocate, at every stage, thereby raising serious doubts about (its) impartiality.”
Scarlett, 15, was found dead on Goa’s Anjuna beach in February 2008. While her family claimed Scarlett was drugged and raped before she was left to die, the police had initially refused to file a case, calling it accidental drowning. The victim’s mother, Fiona Mackeown, had pressed for a second autopsy, which found sexual abuse.
Judge Tendulkar had on September 23 acquitted Samson D’Souza and Placido Carvalho.
The verdict said that after recording of witnesses’ statements by Goa Police, CBI had recorded their statement again. “In the circumstances, improvements in the versions of these witnesses are sufficient to create reasonable doubt about the case of prosecution, as claimed by Samson. The benefit of any such doubt would go to the accused,” the order read.
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