Jubilee Hills gang-rape: One suspect arrested
The Jubilee Hills police announced the arrest of one person in connection with the Jubilee Hills gang-rape case.
Announcing the arrest at a late night press conference, West Zone DCP Joel Davis said the suspect Saduddin Malik (18), a resident of Puppalguda in Manikonda along with Omer Khan (18) and three others, all minors, had committed the offence in a moving car.
“We have identified a juvenile boy and his location has been traced. But, as per law minors should not be apprehended in the night time. Our teams are on the job and he will be apprehended tomorrow morning,” Davis said, adding that efforts were on to nab the other absconding suspects.
Narrating the sequence of events, the DCP said 17-year-old victim had accompanied her friend to the pub for a non-alcoholic party in the afternoon on May 28.
“After returning from the party, she was in a state of shock, as noticed by her father. The family however, tried and kept her in a comfortable position. A few days later, after learning she was molested by a few youngsters, her father lodged a complaint,” he said.
On receiving a complaint from the father on May 31, the Jubilee Hills police first booked a case for outraging the modesty of a woman under Section 354 and under the POCSO Act and took up investigation.
“As a Standard Operating Procedure, she was sent for a medical examination and to the Bharosa Centre, where she revealed about the ordeal to women officials. A statement was recorded and forwarded to the Jubilee Hills police, after which the case was altered to gang-rape and other relevant sections of the POCSO Act,” Davis said, adding that it was almost four days by then and the victim could hardly disclose details about the suspects.
However, with one lead given by her, the police teams including the Task Force, CCS, Law and Order collected CCTV footage from the starting point to the end and examined Call Data Records.
“We verified all cameras from the starting point at the pub from where she got into the car, to all the places where the car went, until it returned to the pub, where the suspects dropped her back after committing the offence. All the evidences were corroborated with the victim’s statement and other details, leading to the identification and arrest of the suspect,” the DCP said.
Responding to reports on the involvement of Home Minister Mohd Mahmood Ali’s grandson, the DCP clarified that those were “baseless allegations”. As for the other suspects, the DCP said the names of the suspects or of their relatives could not be disclosed because the suspects were minors.
