India police arrest man in Keeling's murder case

Indian police have arrested a man suspected of raping a 15-year-old British girl found dead last month on a beach in Goa, in a case highlighting worries about the security of women visitors.

Indian authorities originally said that Scarlett Keeling, a 15-year-old British tourist, appeared to have drowned after taking drugs. Later they said a second autopsy revealed injuries that indicated murder.

"One person was arrested yesterday evening," Kishan Kumar, a senior police official in Goa, told Reuters on Monday. "We have sufficient evidence against him regarding rape. As far as the allegation of murder is concerned an investigation is under way."

Samson D'Souza, 29, reported to be a barman in a beach shack, is due to appear in court on Monday.

Keeling's mother, Fiona MacKeown, had always maintained her daughter was drugged, raped and murdered, and has accused the police of covering up the real circumstances of her death.

The autopsy revealed bruises all over Keeling's body, that her mouth was stuffed with sand and she did not have enough saltwater in her lungs to indicate drowning.

Indian media said there may have been an attempt to play down the death to protect the state's tourism industry.

Keeling's case is the latest to highlight the safety of tourists in India. Tourism officials met this year to discuss attacks on tourists after at least seven foreign women and girls said they had been raped or molested.