The Additional and District Sessions Court in Kottayam on Thursday found Suresh, the prime accused in the Vithura sex racket case, guilty in one of the 24 cases registered against him in connection with the rape and sale of the victim for sex work.
The quantum of sentence for the accused will be pronounced on Friday.
Considering the case, judge Johnson John found the accused guilty under IPC 344 (wrongful confinement for 10 or more days), IPC 372 (selling minor for the purpose of prostitution) and Section 31 and 51 (g) of the Immoral Traffic Prevention Act. The court, meanwhile, acquitted him of the charges under Sections 376 and 109 of the IPC for forcing another person to rape the girl.
The trial against Suresh, which began in 2019 and was delayed due to the pandemic situation, also witnessed the Special Public prosecutor Rajagopal Padippurakkal verifying one of the witnesses from the U.S, through video-conferencing.
The prosecution case pertained to the incident that took place in October 1995. The sex trade involving the minor girl came to light in July 1996 when the victim landed in police custody along with one of the accused.
Based on the victim's statement, Suresh of Jubaira Manzil in Kadakkal, Kollam, was arraigned as the prime accused in the case for raping the girl and forcing her to sex trade after keeping the victim in illegal custody for days. The prosecution has submitted 24 set of charges against him in connection with the case.
Though the case was registered in 1996, he had been absconding for 18 years and surrendered before a court in 2014. After being granted bail, he went into hiding once again and landed in custody of a Crime Branch team from Hyderabad five years later.
Of the 46 accused in the case, 20 persons have been acquitted by the court so far for want of evidence.
