surat: A 35-year-old man, who was released on bail in September after being arrested for allegedly raping a 72-year-old woman in Bharuch’s Amod police station area, reportedly committed the same crime twice against the same victim.
The accused was initially arrested in June 2023 after the elderly woman filed a complaint against him at the Amod police station.
He was incarcerated in Bharuch sub-jail for nearly 14 months before being granted bail in September. However, he allegedly returned to assault the woman again this month.
According to the police complaint, the woman, who lives alone on a farm in a village in the Amod police station area, was first raped by the accused on Dec 15.
While she was sleeping, the accused allegedly broke into her house, raped her, and threatened to kill her if she revealed the incident to anyone.
A week later, on Dec 22, the man went to her house again, dragged her out to an isolated spot on the farm, and raped her for a second time.
The woman again lodged a complaint with Amod police for rape and criminal intimidation. After raping the woman, the accused went into hiding.
Deputy superintendent of police P L Chaudhary said, “After raping the woman, the accused fled from the village. We formed teams comprising the Local Crime Branch (LCB), Special Operations Group (SOG), and Amod police to track him down.
Acting on a tip-off, we located him hiding in the Kerwada village area nearby. Using a drone, our team searched for him and apprehended him.
“The elderly woman was living alone in her village home adjacent to her farm since the death of her husband a few months ago. The accused, who worked as a labourer in local industries and as a farmhand, reportedly took advantage of her isolation.
