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Jail Superintendent Brijesh Kumar confirmed that Koli walked out of the jail around 7.20 pm on Wednesday.
Kumar said, “Surendra Koli was released after the Supreme Court order.”
Also read: Nithari murder case: Supreme Court acquits Surendra Koli, accepts his curative petition
Dressed in a blue shirt, black trousers and a navy-blue jacket, Koli walked out of the jail accompanied by his lawyers. His family members were not present at the jail gate and refused to talk to the media gathered outside. It was not immediately known where he was taken after his release.
The Nithari case came to light in 2006 when skeletal remains, skulls and bones were found in the backyard and drains near the bungalow (D-5) of businessman Moninder Singh Pandher in Sector 31, Noida.
The gruesome findings, revealing the disappearances and murders of several children and women, sparked nationwide outrage and terrified the local community.
Pandher, a co-accused in the case, was also in jail for years, but was released on October 20, 2023, after his acquittal in the case.
On Tuesday (November 11), a bench of Supreme Court Chief Justice BR Gavai and Justices Surya Kant and Vikram Nath acquitted Koli in the last pending case related to the alleged rape and murder of a 15-year-old girl.
The court said, “Criminal law does not permit conviction on the basis of conjecture or conjecture” and directed his immediate release if he is not wanted in any other case.
Also read: After Supreme Court acquittal of Koli, families of Nithari victims say justice is in ‘God’s hands’
Acknowledging the “heinous” nature of the crimes and the “immeasurable suffering” of the victims’ families, the bench said the prosecution had failed to establish the crime beyond reasonable doubt.
“Suspicion, no matter how serious, cannot take the place of evidence,” the court said, adding that “negligence and delay destroyed the fact-finding process.” The court pointed out several lapses in the investigation, including failure to secure the crime scene, delay in recording revelations, neglect of important witnesses, misuse of forensic material and neglect of potential clues, including an alleged organ trade angle flagged by a government-appointed panel.
Koli, who was 30 when he was arrested in 2006, had been given several death sentences in different cases over the years. In January 2015, the Allahabad High Court commuted his death sentence to life imprisonment, citing delay in deciding his mercy petition.
In October 2023, the High Court acquitted both Koli and Pandher in other Nithari cases, overturning the death sentence awarded by the trial court.
The Supreme Court later dismissed all appeals against those acquitted on July 30 this year.
Expressing disappointment over the lengthy investigation, the top court said, “It is extremely regrettable that despite the lengthy investigation, the identity of the real culprit could not be established in accordance with legal standards.”