Auto driver who raped Navi Mumbai teen still absconding

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After following a Navi-Mumbai-based 16-year-old girl for over one week, an auto-rickshaw driver allegedly abducted and raped her near MIDC area of Mahape on Friday evening. The victim, who works as a cashier in a hotel in the area, was returning home from work when the incident took place.

After her family approached the Rabale MIDC police, they registered a case in the matter and launched a search operation for the accused. However, the auto-rickshaw driver continues to remain untraceable.

Victim abused
The police said that apart from raping her, the accused even beat her up and attempted to strangulate her when she tried to escape. Speaking to mid-day, M Kashid, assistant police inspector, said, "The accused has been residing in Digha area for the past one-and-a-half years. He is married and has a daughter. After we checked some CCTV footages recovered from the areas close to the hotel, where the victim works, we found that the accused was keeping a tab on her activities for the past one week." He further said, "Last week, twice he offered to drop her home from work.

On Friday, after she boarded his auto, he took her to an isolated place on the pretext of taking a shortcut. However, when the girl started shouting for help, he beat her up and then raped her. On spotting the incident, some passersby informed us. Later, she was taken to the hospital for primary treatment and a case was registered in the matter. The accused is constantly changing his location, but he will be nabbed soon."

How could he do this?
When contacted, the victim's aunt said, "A year ago she passed her SSC exams and started working, as she wanted to fund her grandmother's medical treatment. Her father died when she was young and even her mother passed away during her second pregnancy. Since then she has been staying with me. I want to beat that man to death. Being a father to a girl, how could he do something like this?"

Also read: Mumbai Crime: Auto driver rapes orphan girl and tries to kill her, flees

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