A 16-year-old girl from Pune was allegedly raped by four people, including two minors, after she befriended them on Instagram. The girl was allegedly raped by the four on separate occasions in different places. The two minor accused were detained, while the adults, aged between 20 and 22, were arrested.
The accused did not know one another but had allegedly befriended the girl separately on social media, the police were quoted as saying by news agency PTI. The accused allegedly sexually assaulted the girl, a student at a Pune-based college, at various places in the city between April and September.
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How The Crimes Were Revealed
The alleged crimes came to the fore during a counselling session on sexual offences against children organised at the girl's college. One of her close college friends seemed upset during the counselling session. When asked, she revealed that the girl (purported victim) had confided in her about her ‘bad experiences’.
She also said that the girl was in tremendous mental trauma. The college authorities approached the police over the matter and the case was lodged on September 24.
"Later, an investigation revealed the victim had met the four suspects. The accused are not known to each other. However, they all met the girl over social media platforms. She alleged that they raped her on separate occasions," a woman police officer was quoted as saying by PTI.
The police said the girl also alleged that videos of the sexual assault were also made by the accused. "Hence, the accused have been slapped with charges under the IT Act along with rape and provisions of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences [POCSO] Act," the officer said.
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