The dead, Kusum Singhal, was hit by a brick on her head by the accused on Saturday (Representational)
A day after a 79-year-old woman was found dead at her house in central Delhi's Old Rajendra Nagar, a 17-year-old boy was apprehended on Sunday in connection with the killing, police said.
The dead, Kusum Singhal, was hit by a brick on her head by the accused on Saturday during a robbery bid, they said.
Based on technical surveillance, the accused was apprehended from Delhi on Sunday.
Police said the accused, who is a vendor, was known to the woman for years and used to often visit her. He allegedly entered her house to loot cash and jewellery.
Investigations revealed that a fight broke out between the duo and he allegedly killed her by hitting her with a brick. Then he stole jewellery and cash from the house before fleeing, they said.
According to police, the woman's husband died a few years ago and she was living alone in the house. She has two daughters -- one of them lives in south Delhi with her husband, while the other lives in Switzerland.
On Saturday afternoon, when her daughter was not able to reach her over the phone, she called a neighbour to check on her. When the neighbour reached the victim's residence at around 2:10 pm, he found Singhal lying on the floor, Deputy Commissioner of Police (central) Shweta Chauhan said.
Police said prima facie it appeared to be a friendly entry and the household items were found dispersed there.
"There was an old brick that was used to kill her. We questioned house helps and neighbours to understand the sequence of events and trace the killer. Our teams scanned CCTV footage and conducted an enquiry," Ms Chauhan said.
Singhal's mobile phones, jewellery and some cash were missing from her house, she said.
On checking CCTV camera footage, the accused was seen leaving the woman's house on Saturday morning after allegedly killing her, she added.
During interrogation, the accused told police that he went to her house on Saturday morning hoping to steal expensive jewellery and articles and allegedly planned the attack, the officer said.
Blood-stained clothes and shoes worn by the accused were seized from the house of the accused along with the stolen mobile phone, imitation jewellery and Rs 2,000 in cash, police said.