4-year-old raped and brutally assaulted by young relative near Mumbai

The 19-year-old tried to strangulate her and hid the unconscious child under mattresses before running away; police arrested him later the same day

A four-year-old girl was assaulted and raped by her 19-year-old relative in Uran, a coastal town in Raigad district around 48km from Mumbai city, on Tuesday.

The incident took place in Uran on Tuesday.

The incident occurred around 5pm, and the accused, whose name has been withheld to protect the child, was arrested later the same day, the police said.

“The accused is related to the child and lived next door. Her mother had gone to the market at the time and the child was playing outside her house when the accused took her to his house, where he brutally assaulted her and then raped her. He also strangulated her and hid her under mattresses,” said Nagraj Mazge, senior police inspector of Uran police station.

The girl’s family started searching for her in the evening, By which time the accused had run away. “A neighbour told her uncle, who was looking for her, that she had seen the youngster take her to his house, so they searched the house. But she was hidden under mattresses and they did not see her. However, the neighbour insisted that she had seen her being led into the house, so they searched the house thoroughly again and finally discovered her lying unconscious under the mattresses,” the inspector said.

The child has been admitted to J J hospital in Mumbai and is reported to be in stable condition.

The case was reported to the police on Tuesday night. “We then sent several teams in search of the accused to various probable areas and caught him late at night.”

“It is fortunate that she has survived, as the accused had violently assaulted her. We are investigating the case further,” Mazge said.