VIJAYAWADA: Forty-five days since the Tadepalli gang rape incident, police arrested the key accused Venkat Reddy at Ongole town in Prakasam district on Thursday morning.
According to police sources, six teams from Guntur Urban and Krishna district stationed themselves in Ongole to nab the two accused, identified as Venkat Reddy and S Krishna. The arrests follow extensive investigation, during which police personnel went undercover to carry out inquiries with beggars, transgenders, small traders and rag pickers near the railway tracks.
Cops pointed out that Krishna was last spotted by locals near his home in Vijayawada. Upon identifying him and calling out his name, he managed to board a moving goods train and flee from the spot. The information led police to suspect that Krishna might be hiding near the railway bridges. While Venkat Reddy was arrested when he was resting under a flyover, police suspect that the second accused Krishna might be in the same vicinity, as investigation points to the duo having fled together. Cops took Venkat Reddy to an undisclosed location where he is being interrogated while the search for Krishna continues.
It may be recollected that the crime happened on the night of June 21 at the Seethanagaram Pushkar Ghat where the victim, a nurse, and her fiancé were spending time. The two accused attacked the couple and tied their hands. While the man was brutally thrashed, the woman was sexually assaulted before the duo stole their mobile phones and fled on a boat.
Cops ascertained the identity of the accused after the victim identified them from pictures of previous offenders in the area. Cops said the accused were previously part of the notorious blade batch in Vijayawada.
(The victim's identity has not been revealed to protect her privacy as per Supreme Court directives on cases related to sexual assault)
