POCSO accused dies in police custody

The case has been transferred from the Pydhonie police station to Mumbai crime branch as a precaution for a fair probe, said senior police officers

MUMBAI: A 40-year-old man arrested under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act died under mysterious conditions on Wednesday night while undergoing treatment at the state-run JJ Hospital. The man, identified as Vishal Vishwkarma, was assaulted by the six-year-old victim’s family before being arrested on Saturday, which led to his death, police claimed.

POCSO accused dies in police custody

The case has been transferred from the Pydhonie police station to Mumbai crime branch as a precaution for a fair probe, said senior police officers.

According to the police, the accused molested the six-year-old girl near her house on February 11 after luring her with chocolate. When he visited the area again on February 15, the girl identified her, following which he was assaulted by her family members.

“The family later called the police control room, and the Pydhonie police reached the spot and arrested Vishwakarma under the POCSO Act,” said a police officer.

Vishwakarma was booked under sections 8 (sexual assault) and 12 (sexual harassment) of the POCSO Act and section 74 (assaulting or using criminal force against a woman with the intent to outrage her modesty) of the Bhartiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023.

“He complained of fever while undergoing a medical check-up on Tuesday and was admitted at JJ Hospital, where he passed away on Wednesday night,” said the officer quoted earlier.

Police had registered a case against unknown persons regarding the assault on Vishwakarma on Wednesday, and sections pertaining to murder were added to it after he passed away. “We are checking CCTV footage to see how many people assaulted Vishwakarma,” said the officer.

The crime branch will carry out an independent inquiry into the matter, he said.