VILLUPURAM: Police arrested another man on charges of sexually assaulting a 16-year-old girl in Villupuram district. The arrested was a 26-year-old man who stayed in the same locality, said superintendent of police (Villupuram) N Shreenatha.
Police have so far arrested eight men for sexually assaulting the Class XI girl since last July whenever she was alone at her relative’s house in the district. The girl moved to her relative’s house after her mother died.
The minor’s relative is also among the arrested. She was charged with abetting the crime and failing to report the crime to the authorities concerned. The other eight men were booked under sections 5 (aggravated penetrative sexual assault) and 6 (punishment for aggravated penetrative sexual assault) of Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (Pocso) Act, 2012.
The issue came to light when the girl fell sick recently. Her relatives took her to a hospital where a doctor found that she was six months pregnant.
(The victim's identity has not been revealed to protect her privacy as per Supreme court directives on cases related to sexual assault)
