Mysuru Gangrape Accused Were Involved in Similar Crimes, One was Arrested in Sandalwood Theft Cases

Accused arrested in the Mysuru gang rape case are suspected to have committed similar sex crimes in past, it has emerged. The five accused include a juvenile and investigation revealed that there were multiple incidents where the gang had committed crimes, but none of them were reported.

“The accused have confessed that they had committed similar crimes in the past and were confident that they would never get caught because as many victims feared of getting exposed. We will surely make them pay for their crimes,” said a senior officer who wished not to be named.

On August 24, an MBA student who was with her male friend was allegedly molested, sexually assaulted while her friend was beaten near Chamundi foothills on the outskirts of Mysuru. The accused were arrested within five days of the crime being committed.

A police officer also stated that earlier, one of the accused was arrested in a sandalwood smuggling case, where the police had seized 46 kg of sandalwood worth Rs 5.5 lakh. However, he was let out on bail. Another police officer told News18 that the accused have confessed that they used to target young couples visiting Chamundi hills as in most cases guardians of the couples were unaware about their visit and they became easy targets for exploitation.

“We suspect the accused used to record the video of women after stripping their clothes and used to threaten that they will make the video viral on social media. The Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) team is looking after the mobile phones of the accused to retrieve the videos they have captured. We are trying our best to convince the victim to register her statement. She is traumatised, but we are taking help of the best psychologists. We are not going to let these predators go in any way” an officer said.

“We are continuing the interrogation of the accused and we request victims to come forward and register complaint if there was any kind of rape, gang-rape, molestation or robbery that they were exposed in around Chamundi hills or away in Mysuru,” Mysuru City Police Commissioner Dr Chandragupta said.

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