Quick Summary: Dineshkumar, who was originally going to be executed for the brutal murder of a 12-year-old girl in Salem, had his sentence changed to life in prison. The court looked at various factors and decided that life in prison was more fitting.
On October 22, 2018, in Salem, a terrifying crime took place. Dineshkumar was accused of killing a 12-year-old girl, referred to as XXX, by cutting off her head in front of her mother. This happened after he had supposedly been bothering her with unwanted attention.
According to the people accusing him, Dineshkumar, who lived nearby, had been bothering the young girl since October 19, 2018. On the evening of October 22, he went into the girl’s house with a large knife and attacked her. Even though her mother tried to stop him, he dragged the girl outside and cut off her head. Neighbors and other witnesses saw what happened and confirmed the events.
"The accused came to the house of PW1 with M.O.1 - Billhook and inflicted a cut on the backside neck of XXX," stated the court documents.
The trial was held in a special court for cases involving crimes against children. At first, Dineshkumar was sentenced to death on April 26, 2022. However, when he appealed, the judges, including Justice N. Sathish Kumar and Justice M. Jothiraman, looked at the case again.
The court looked at several things before changing the sentence:
On November 27, 2025, the court decided that the case was not one of the "rarest of rare" that would need a death sentence. Instead, Dineshkumar was sentenced to life in prison without the chance of getting out for 20 years.
"The alternative sentence of imprisonment for life would, in the considered opinion of this Court, meet the ends of justice," the judgment stated.
