Nearly a week after a 13-year-old went missing from her home in South Delhi, police have found that she was allegedly gangraped by at least four men, who kidnapped her and took her out of the city. The girl was eventually abandoned and found outside a Metro station. Police said they have arrested three accused and apprehended a minor so far. According to the girl’s father, a driver, she left her house around 5 pm on April 24 to eat momos. When she didn’t return, he thought she had gone to a friend’s place or was with relatives. Eventually, a missing person complaint was lodged on April 26. “She would usually take an auto or e-rickshaw to the market. When she didn’t come back, I first thought she went to meet her friends. But later I called everyone to enquire and realised she was missing. She came back after a week — she told me the accused kidnapped her in an auto and sedated her. They raped her, and threatened to kill her using a broken beer bottle… On returning, she was taken for a medical test and then police took us to the court to record a statement. The Child Welfare Committee officials came to see her and then she was sent to a shelter home. I am clueless, depressed… I don’t know what to do,” said her father. Police said they registered a kidnapping case on April 26 and sent teams to trace her. On May 1, police received inputs from informers that a suspect was in South Delhi. Benita Mary Jaiker, DCP (South), said, “We were looking for the victim and the accused. On May 1, a boy was apprehended. He led us to the others. They confessed but didn’t help us in identifying or tracing the girl.” On May 2, police found her near a Metro station with the help of a local who recalled seeing a missing poster with her photo. “The investigating officer received a call from a woman. We sent an officer and recovered the girl. She was under the influence of narcotics or drugs. She was taken for a medical examination at AIIMS where sexual abuse was confirmed,” said DCP Jaiker. Police identified the accused as Mohit (20), Aakash (19), Shahrukh (20) and a juvenile. During interrogation, they said that after kidnapping the girl, they raped her and took her to Tigri and Mathura before abandoning her on May 1. Police said she was scared and didn’t want to go home, so she walked to the Metro station and stayed there for a day.
