2 held for sending abusive messages to minor

The crime branch on Sunday arrested two people for allegedly harassing a 17-year-old girl and sending abusive messages to her.

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The accused – Sandeep Nishad, 20, and Kush Yadav, 20 – reside in Powai and used to stalk the girl and tried to speak to her. However, she always avoided them, said a crime branch officer.

The police said Nishad asked the girl’s friend for her mobile number and on July 27, she received a message from an unknown number. The girl did not reply, following which he sent her abusive messages. She then blocked Nishad’s mobile number, said the officer.

He then started sending abusive and vulgar messages from Yadav’s number. The girl got scared and told her parents about the incident, following which a case was registered by the Powai police on August 9.

Officers from crime branch unit 10 initiated a parallel inquiry and traced the accused through their mobile locations and brought them to the unit office, said deputy commissioner of the police Akbar Pathan.

Their mobile phones were seized and handed over to the Powai police.

The duo were arrested under sections 509 (word, gesture or act intended to insult the modesty of a woman) and 354 (5) (assault or criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).