A seven-year-old girl was sexually assaulted, allegedly by a 16-year-old boy, near Moodbidri on Saturday. According to the police, the girl was going home from the market around 5 p.m. when the boy, who is her neighbour, followed her and assaulted her. The complaint, which was filed on Sunday, stated that he ran away when her screams attracted passersby.
The boy, who is a high school dropout, was arrested and produced before the Juvenile Justice Board on Sunday. The police have booked him under section 354 of the IPC, Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO) and the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 as the girl belongs to a ST community.
