-- Samir Umarye
BICHOLIM: Bicholim Police on Friday arrested four persons in connection with the rape of a 20-year-old mentally challenged woman from Mapusa. It may be recalled that woman was reported missing at the Mapusa Police station on April 14. The woman had left her residence to proceed to a temple on April 13, but when she did not return home till late evening, her father rushed to the police station and lodged a missing complaint and provided his daughter’s mobile number to the police. Police sources said they managed to obtain call details of the woman’s mobile phone number and traced her calls to Pradip Malik. The police traced Malik at Latambarcem and arrested him from a house, but did not find the victim. During the course of interrogation, Malik admitted that the woman had already left for Mapusa by public transport. Police immediately contacted the Karasvaddo Police outpost and asked them to stop the bus. The police intercepted the bus at Karasvaddo-Mapusa and asked the woman to alight from the vehicle. The police later arrested another accused, Chandrashekhar Malik, in connection with the case. When the victim’s statement was recorded on April 22 in the presence of NGOs and a psychiatrist, police was informed that she had been raped by four more persons at Mayem and Ladphem on April 18, after she was taken in a car to an isolated place. Police have arrested the four accused under Sections 365, 354, 342 and 376 read with 34 of IPC. They were later remanded to four days police custody. Bicholim PSI Razashad Shaikh is investigating the case under the guidance of PI Ninad Deulkar. and DySP Gajanan Prabhudesai.
