Three Sisters Killed, Raped in India: Girls Aged 5-11 Go Missing on Valentine's Day, Bodies Found in Roadside Well, Police Launch Manhunt

Reports confirm that the bodies of three sisters, all between the ages of 5-11, were found in an India village well days after they were pronounced missing on Valentine's Day (Feb. 14). Police confirm that each young girl was brutally raped before being murdered and thrown into the depths of a Bhandara district well in the Maharashtra state. On Thursday (Feb. 21), law enforcement from New Delhi announced that they recently launched a manhunt into the crime to bring the morbid killer(s) to justice. This horrific incident is just the latest in a string of violent sexual attacks to hit the country.

As NDTV reports, while India was celebrating its "One Billion Rising" movement to fight and make aware violence against women on February 14, three young sisters (aged 5, 9, and 11) went missing after school during a search to find food. The fatherless children came from a poor home, and while their mother was away at work they decided to go out in search of some food. They allegedly ended up at a roadside dhaba (eatery) on the outskirts of town. They never returned home.

The girls' mother promptly filed a missing persons complaint with the police, and their lifeless bodies were found four days later in the well. Three pairs of tiny slippers were found next to empty liquor bottles scattered near the area. Officers initially stated that the sisters may have committed suicide due to poverty and hunger. Local residents protested this finding, which led police to conduct an autopsy. The results confirmed that the young girls were indeed brutally raped and murdered.

The unnamed mother and her supporters accused the police of a poor investigation. Protests erupted on the streets of a populated national highway on Wednesday (Feb. 20) - villagers wanted answers and justice.  

Cabinet Minister Manish Tewari deemed the killings a "very, very heinous assault" and announced that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was sending 1 million rupees ($18,300) to the family. A manhunt was launched on Thursday to track down the unidentified assaulters. Six-seven special units were formed, and according to Inspector General of Police Nagpur Range, "We have checked out 100 to 150 people and interrogated 10 to 15" (NDTV).

The brutal gang rape and murder of a young woman on a bus in New Delhi on Dec. 16 set off nationwide protests about India's treatment of women. Five men are currently being tried on rape and murder charges involving that incident.

As ABC News reports, "A new law enacted by the government has increased the sentences for rape from the existing seven to 10 years to a maximum of 20 years. It also provides for the death penalty in extreme cases of rape that result in death or leave the victim in a coma. It has also made voyeurism, stalking, acid attacks and the trafficking of women punishable under criminal law."

To watch a news report video on the shocking report, go here.