Gangraping 26-year-old woman; accused arrested after 27 years

KOLLAM: An accused in a sexual abuse case in Anchal has been arrested after 27 years. The arrested is Sajeev, a resident of Sreenivasapuram in Varkala. The incident related to the case happened in July 1997.

The case is that the woman was kidnapped and gangraped while she was returning home in a private bus from the temple in Kulathupuzha. The married woman was kidnapped and taken to an isolated place by the accused and his friends and sexually abused. Ten including the son of the private bus owner are accused in the case. Police registered a case on the woman's complaint and arrested Sajeev. However, after being remanded, he took bail and flew abroad.

The court had in 2003 declared him a fugitive. The police said that he came from abroad and was working as an auto driver in the state. The police on receiving secret information about the accused, arrested Sajeev from Chenkottukonam, in Thiruvananthapuram. He was produced in the court and remanded.

An accused in the POCSO case where a 19-year-old girl was kidnapped from Nooranad on the pretext of marriage and abused was also arrested. The Nooranad police arrested Reghu (49) from his home in Nooranad.

Though a missing complaint was filed after two weeks, the investigation was hit as the accused and the girl did not have a mobile. The police arrested Reghu from Anchal Mavila area on Monday morning after examining the CCTV footages.