Coimbatore City Police have arrested five men, including a 70-year-old and 17-year-old, on the charge of raping a 13-year-old girl.
The teenager was gang-raped on several occasions since April last, according to the police.
Those arrested were the girl’s maternal uncle Gopalakrishnan (62) of Ondipudur; his friends Karuppusamy (60) of Sulur; Balu alias Balasubramaniam (70), a retired medical assistant; Karuppusamy (58) of Ramanathapuram and the 17-year-old boy. All of them have been charged under Sections 376 g (gang rape) and 506 (i) (criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal Code and Sections 4, 5 and 6 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012.
The girl stayed with Gopalakrishnan since childhood after her mother deserted the family. Her father Dhandapani, a physically challenged person, runs a petty shop.
The Police said that Gopalakrishnan, along with Karuppusamy and Balasubramaniam, had raped the girl in April last when he had taken her to Balasubramaniam’s house for medication after she complained of fever.
The girl told the police that after Balasubramaniam administered an injection, she lost consciousness for a while. When she regained consciousness, her clothes were torn and she experienced pain and suffered injuries. The accused had gang-raped the girl for the second time in July at Karuppusamy’s farm near Pollachi when Gopalakrishnan took her there on the pretext of going on an outing. The third incident took place in August last at the fourth accused Karuppusamy’s house in Sundarapuram.
The girl was raped again in Sathyamangalam by the minor boy, who was Gopalakrishnan’s neighbour. This was after the girl had reported the rape and sexual harassment to the boy, her lover, and sought help.
The boy promised help saying he would take her to his aunt’s house in Sathyamangalam. Trusting his words, the girl eloped with him a week ago, but ended up being raped by him, police said.
When the girl went missing, Gopalakrishnan, along with the other accused, traced her to Sathyamangalam and brought her home. The girl, expecting trouble, broke down and narrated the matter to Gopalakrishnan’s sons who took her to the police station.
A police team led by Assistant Commissioner of Police K. Ramachandran laid a trap and nabbed the accused, who were later remanded to custody.
The girl was sent for medical examination and later entrusted in the care of the Government Home.
