On run for three years, suspected rapist held in Gurugram after posting selfie

Deputy commissioner of police (south) Vijay Kumar said in February 2016, a Delhi resident had alleged that Rahul, who she knew, had, in 2015, offered her a drink laced with a sedative.

Police were on the hunt for 24-year-old Rahul, a resident of Gurugram’s Sikandarpur and suspected of raping a 23-year-old woman, for the last three years. Finally, on Sunday they managed to arrest him thanks to a selfie he posted on Facebook.

Police were on the hunt for 24-year-old Rahul, a resident of Gurugram’s Sikandarpur and suspected of raping a 23-year-old woman, for the last three years. (Reuters File Photo)

Deputy commissioner of police (south) Vijay Kumar said in February 2016, a Delhi resident had alleged that Rahul, who she knew, had, in 2015, offered her a drink laced with a sedative. “She said that she lost unconsciousness and that the man raped her. She also said that he later sexually exploited her several times with the threat of leaking videos and pictures of the episode on social media,” the DCP said.

Kumar said a case of rape and under other relevant sections was registered at Kotla Mubarakpur police station and investigations were initiated.

“Police teams had been searching for him for over three years, but since his antecedents were not available it was tough to trace him. His call records could not be procured as the telecom company whose SIM card the suspect had been using, had shut operations,” Kumar said.

The officer said that a special team was formed and tasked with scanning the social media profiles of all the similar named people. “Hundreds of Facebook accounts were scanned over weeks with the help of the woman. During one such search, the complainant identified one of the Facebook profiles to be that of the accused. We searched his profile for clues like address, phone numbers or friends but the profile was restricted,” the DCP said.

However, the police team came across a selfie of the suspect, in which a restaurant was seen in the background. “We noted the phone number of the restaurant and contacted the owner. During questioning, he revealed that Rahul used to work for him till 2017 as a delivery boy. He provided the address and other details of the suspect. We raided Rahul’s home in the morning in Sikandarpur and he was arrested,” the DCP said.