Three people were arrested on Thursday arrested for allegedly raping a 20-year-old woman in Kallapu on the outskirts of Mangaluru, police said.
Mangaluru city commissioner of police Anupam Agarwal said three people, including an auto driver, were arrested on the basis of a complaint by a woman stating that she was gang-raped after being “forced to drink alcohol”. “The woman, originally from Cooch Behar in West Bengal, lived in Uppala in Kerala and worked in plywood manufacturing unit for past two years,”
“Hoping to find new job opportunities, she reached Mangaluru on April 16 along with her friend. They were staying together at a rented accommodation. However, tensions flared between the two shortly after their arrival, leading to a heated argument. During the altercation on Wednesday evening, she left. Her mobile phone was reportedly damaged, leaving her without means of communication,” he said.
“In an effort to get her phone repaired, the woman stopped an auto. The driver, later identified as Prabhuraj Pujari, offered to help and took her to a nearby mobile service shop on Wednesday. He also allegedly paid for the phone repair, which led the woman to trust him,” he said.
“Prabhuraj then called his two friends and they along with the woman went to an abandoned house in a deserted area of Kallapu on the outskirts of Mangaluru. In there, they forced her to drink excessively and then raped her,” he said. “The woman somehow managed to flee and reached a house of a local at 12.30 am seeking help. Upon seeing several injuries on her body, the resident immediately called 112 to alert the police,” he said.
The officer said that surveillance footage from nearby CCTV cameras revealed the number plate of the auto which took the woman to the house. “During the investigation, the woman’s mobile device showed that a payment of ₹60 was made to the auto driver. Besides this, the key accused, Prabhuraj, was also identified on the basis of the number plate.”
“After a search, Prabhuraj was arrested who told the police about his two friends. They were arrested and they confessed to the crime. They are being interrogated and an investigation is being conducted based on this information. The woman is currently being treated,” Agarwal said.
The accused have been identified as Prabhuraj Pujari (38), auto-rickshaw driver from Mulki, Mithun Naik (30), an electrician from Kumpala; and Mani Kanta (30), who works as a delivery agent in Mangaluru. They have been booked under various sections of the BNS, including charges related to assault and sexual offences.