Police have arrested two men for allegedly raping a 12-year-old girl in Uttarakhand after she left her home following an argument with her family, officers said on Friday. The accused allegedly sexually assaulted the minor at different locations in Haldwani and Sitarganj in Udham Singh Nagar district before being arrested, police said.
Haldwani police station in-charge Vijay Mehta said that the girl’s mother had lodged a missing complaint on July 29, following which the police registered a First Information Report (FIR) under Section 137(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and launched a search operation.
The girl was found in Haldwani on Thursday afternoon, police said.
Police teams examined CCTV footage from the area, which showed a man luring the minor into a car and driving away with her.
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The first suspect, Vikram Singh, a 29-year-old man from Haripurnayak in Nainital district’s Kusumkheda, was arrested from Haldwani on Thursday night.
“During interrogation, Vikram told police that he had found the minor near Barf Wali Gali close to the roadways bus station at night. He allegedly took her to a studio, where he sexually assaulted her before dropping her back near Barf Wali Gali,” Mehta said.
{{/usCountry}}“During interrogation, Vikram told police that he had found the minor near Barf Wali Gali close to the roadways bus station at night. He allegedly took her to a studio, where he sexually assaulted her before dropping her back near Barf Wali Gali,” Mehta said.
{{/usCountry}}According to the police investigation, the girl later moved to DK Park, where she met Saurabh Bisht, a 21-year-old from Trilokpur Dani in the Gaulapar area of Haldwani.
Police arrested Bisht from Gaulapar on Thursday night. During questioning, he allegedly admitted to taking the girl to Shakti Farm in Sitarganj, officers said.
Mehta said that additional charges under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act have been added to the FIR. “Both accused were produced before a court on Friday and have been sent to judicial custody,” Mehta said.
Police also seized the vehicle allegedly used in the crime. The investigation into the case is continuing.