JAJPUR: A 15-year-old boy was held for allegedly raping a three-year-old girl in Odisha's Jajpur district, police said on Wednesday. The incident happened at a village in the Sukinda police station area on Tuesday night when the girl was alone at her home, they said.
The boy was a neighbour of the girl, they said.
The girl was alone while her mother was chatting with a neighbour in the backside of the house. Taking advantage of the situation, he allegedly raped the girl, police said.
Hearing her screams, the mother ran inside the house and found the girl crying, they said.
The boy fled but was caught by police a few hours later after the girl's family lodged a complaint, they said.
"We have registered a case under section 376 (rape) of IPC, besides other sections of the POCSO Act. We arrested the accused from his house," said inspector-in-charge Siba Charan Behera.
The accused was sent to a juvenile home, police said.
In another incident, a 27-year-old man was arrested on Wednesday for allegedly trying to rape a 21-year-old girl at a village in the Kuakhia police station area of the district, police said.
The incident happened last Thursday when the woman was out to attend nature's call at night, they said.
The accused was arrested from his in-laws' place, police said.
He was sent to judicial custody when produced at the court, they said.
(The victim's identity has not been revealed to protect her privacy as per Supreme court directives on cases related to sexual assault)
