Beautician gang-raped by men posing as police, 3 held, main accused on the run

Bengaluru (The Uttam Hindu): The heinous gang rape of a 27-year-old woman near Nelamangala, Bengaluru on Tuesday night has shocked the entire area. Bengaluru Rural Police, acting within 48 hours, have arrested three youths involved in the incident, while a vigorous search is underway for the main accused, Mithun and others.

According to police, the victim, a resident of West Bengal had been living in a rented house in Bengaluru with her husband and two sons for the past six months and worked as a beautician at weddings. Her husband was away at work at the time of the incident.

In her complaint, the victim stated that five men, claiming to be local police, forcibly entered her home around 9:30 pm on October 21. The accused falsely accused her and her acquaintances of possessing marijuana and being involved in prostitution and demanded ₹1 lakh to settle the matter.

According to the victim, when she and her friend resisted, the accused attacked them with a cricket bat and a machete (knife-like weapon), leaving her friend unconscious. The assailants tied up her younger son and a friend of her husband and locked them in the bathroom. Three of the accused then dragged her to a nearby house and gang-raped her.

The accused also fled the house, stealing ₹25,000 in cash and two mobile phones. Meanwhile, the victim's eldest son, who was outside, immediately called the police control room. A Hoysala patrol van arrived at the scene, but the accused had already fled.

Police admitted the injured victim to a hospital, where she filed a complaint. The Madanayakanahalli police station registered a case under Section 70 (gang rape) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and began an investigation. By Wednesday night, police had arrested Naveen, Karthik and Glani, while by Thursday afternoon, Suyog, Jangli Prithvi and Seena were also taken into custody.

A senior police officer stated that the main accused, Mithun is the mastermind behind the entire incident. Investigations revealed that Mithun had a long-standing dispute with the victim and had been threatening to "teach her a lesson." He orchestrated the attack by posing as police. Police stated that three accused committed the rape, while two others were involved in the robbery and assault. All arrested accused have been remanded to judicial custody, and special teams are searching for the main accused, Mithun.