A girl was allegedly raped and murdered before her body was dumped on a road. Police have confirmed a taxi driver has been arrested in connection with the reported attack earlier this week.

The girl, 10, was allegedly kidnapped while sleeping on a footpath with her family during the early hours of Monday morning (June 22). She was then raped and murdered before being left on the side of a road. Police launched an immediate manhunt and arrested a taxi driver around six hours later. He has admitted to the crimes and remains in police custody.

As reported by ANI, the girl was allegedly kidnapped in the Mehrauli neighbourhood of South Delhi, India, at around 5am local time on Monday (12.30am UK time). She was living rough with her parents before she was taken.

After waking up and realising their daughter had gone, the parents called the police, and an investigation was launched. Officers scanned CCTV footage from the area to track down the suspect within a matter of hours.

Police have confirmed a 25-year-old man, named as Bablu, was arrested in connection with the alleged kidnapping, rape and murder. He was taken into custody for questioning before admitting to the crimes.

The man revealed he had kidnapped the victim from a footpath in the Mehrauli area before taking her towards Gurugram - a 20km journey that takes around 50 minutes in the car. He then killed the girl before dumping her body on the side of the road.

Police added that the investigation remains ongoing and the suspect remains in custody. He will appear in court at a later date.

According to local media, the victim's family were recently made homeless after previously renting a home in the area. The young girl sold balloons on the street while her parents worked as labourers.

Mehrauli is one of Delhi's oldest and most historic neighbourhoods. It has a population of around 911,000 people and is home to the 200-acre Mehrauli Archaeological Park.