Driver of BEST bus arrested in Mumbai for assaulting 6-year-old

Sopan Ugale, 32, worked with the Goregaon bus depot as a driver.

The Mumbai police arrested a BEST bus driver on Friday for allegedly sexually assaulting a 6-year-old girl on a luxury bus from Shirdi to Mumbai.

Sopan Ugale, 32, who worked with the Goregaon bus depot as a driver, was arrested by unit 12 of the Mumbai crime branch on Friday. The police said the girl, a resident of Malad, and had gone to Shirdi with her parents two days ago.

The family boarded a luxury bus on the night of June 13. Ugale boarded the same bus, from the Sangamner area, around 10.30pm. As the seat next to Ugale’s was empty, the girl’s mother made her sit there.

Around 3am, when the girl was asleep, Ugale allegedly abused her, a police official part of the investigation said. The girl complained about pain in her private parts after she woke up around 6am, which is when the abuse came to light. It is not yet clear if the girl was asleep while Ugale assaulted her, or if he suppressed her reaction.

By the time the family realised what had happened, Ugale had alighted.

The girl’s mother approached the Kurar police station and filed a case of sexual assault under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.

The crime branch began a parallel inquiry, and contacted the travel agency to check their list of passengers.

“Once we found the man’s seat number, we got all his details. Ugale had mentioned his mobile number while taking a ticket, and used it to trace him,” said police inspector Sunil Jadhav.

A police team visited at Ugale’s residence on Friday morning and he was brought to the police station. During interrogation, he confessed to the crime.