Man arrested over Goa death

Indian police now believe that the British teenager found dead in Goa was murdered -- a man's been arrested For nearly three weeks the mother of 15-year-old Scarlett Keeling had been demanding a second autopsy on her daughter's body. She claimed that she had not drowned on a beach on Goa but had been murdered and perhaps raped.

Now that autopsy highlighting the sites of bruises and signed by two medical officers raises at least a suspicion of murder and possibly of rape. The report says the case should be investigated as a homicide.

"The second post mortem confirms that there are 50 bruises and abberations on the child." Vikram Varma - family lawyer

And late this afternoon reports quoting local police said a 28-year-old man had been arrested in connection with the rape and murder of Scarlett Keeling.

The report said witnesses had come forward saying that he had been seen with her near to where he body was found at the resort of Anjuna on February 18th.

Scarlett's mother Fiona Mackowen, from Devon, had found her daughter's clothing on the beach and had taken witness statements.

"I'm very pleased really. It was our main objective to get the police, or somebody, to admit that she'd been murdered as I knew in my heart she had been."

Ms Mackowen was on a six month holiday with Scarlett, her boyfriend and six other children. and had travelled to a nearby state - her daughter remaining behind in the care of a tour guide. She has since rejected claims that the 15-year-old had been seen drinking at 4am in a local bar - saying she did not like alcohol.

The case has caused controversy on Goa with claims that the police feared upsetting the tourist trade.

"The mistake they made was trying to stifle news of the death. So right from the 18th when she died to the 23rd, no-one in Goa had a clue that it had happened. And some of us learned that the death had happened when the news came in from the British media." - Frederick Naronha, Journalist.

And this is not the first time the police have come in for criticism. In 2006 40-year-old Stephen Bennett, a father of two from Cheltenham, was found hanging from a mango tree, 200 miles from Goa where he had been staying.

His parents travelled to there believing he had been killed by local criminals - and was not as police suggested a homosexual who had come looking for sex or a drug dealer, or that he was the victim of an honour killing.

It is little consolation for Scarlett Keeling's family that they are at last being listened to.

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