Woman drugged, raped, assaulted by e-rickshaw driver in Delhi

The woman is originally from Bihar and was headed to Punjab with her three-year-old son for a family event when the incident happened

A 25-year-old woman was allegedly drugged, assaulted with a brick and raped by a 24-year-old e-rickshaw driver near the Sadar Bazar market in New Delhi on Sunday, police officers aware of the matter said on Thursday, adding that the accused has been arrested.

The woman arrived in Delhi on May 26 morning and decided to go shopping at Sadar Bazar since she had a few hours before her train to Punjab at night. (Representational image)

According to deputy commissioner of police (north) Manoj Kumar Meena, the woman is originally from Bihar and was headed to Punjab with her three-year-old son for a family event when the incident happened. Her husband and other family members had already reached Punjab.

The woman arrived in Delhi on May 26 morning and decided to go shopping at Sadar Bazar since she had a few hours before her train to Punjab at night.

Around 6.30pm, she hired an e-rickshaw from Sadar Bazar to return to the New Delhi railway station. “She felt dehydrated during the ride so the e-rickshaw driver offered her some juice to drink which was spiked. Soon, she fell unconscious,” a senior police officer aware of the case said.

The e-rickshaw driver, identified by police as Mohd Umer, then took her to an isolated parking spot near the Sadar Bazar market and raped her. Police said the woman’s son was made to sit in the e-rickshaw during the crime. After raping the woman, the accused picked up the child and left him near his mother. The child was found holding his mother while she was lying unconscious by locals.

“She tried to resist the attack but he hit her on the head with a brick. The impact of the assault was such that she collapsed,” the officer added.

Locals found her lying injured with her son and called the police who then took her to the hospital. “The woman was bleeding profusely. She was rushed to the hospital and is stable. After recording her statement, she went to Punjab on Tuesday,” added the DCP. The woman sustained injuries to her head because of the brick, police said, adding she had to get five to eight stitches on her head. She was discharged within a day of the incident

“We found that the woman’s phone and wallet were missing. A case of rape, robbery and assault was registered against the unknown accused,” he said.

Investigators said the woman did not know about the city and could not remember the details about the accused. “We had no witnesses either. We analysed more than 500 CCTVs to find the accused,” said Meena.

The accused was arrested near Lok Nayak Hospital and confessed to the crime. “The e-rickshaw belongs to another person. The accused was found after the owner told the investigators that he had rented out one of his vehicles to a friend. We have recovered the woman’s phone and wallet from Umer,” said the DCP.

Umer told the investigators that he had “planned” to target a customer and rob them. “However, he also raped the woman and assaulted her with a brick,” added the senior officer.

Police said Umer has previously conned his customers and stolen their wallets and phones. “We are questioning him to get more details on the case,” said the officer. DCP Meena said Umer does not own an e-rickshaw and rents them from different vehicle owners. He is a resident of a JJ colony in Minto Road.