A 35-year-old man was arrested on Sunday for allegedly raping an eight-year-old girl on March 28, Loni police officers said on Monday.
According to police, the incident happened around 3pm when the girl had gone to eat at a Bhandara (community fest) in her locality.
The man lured her into an isolated field near the venue and sexually assaulted her, police said.
“The parents of the girl started searching in the fields for her and spotted the man with their daughter. The man left the girl and fled the spot, issuing threats to her the parents if they told anyone. The family approached the police station on Saturday,” assistant commissioner of police (ACP) of the Loni circle, Siddharth Gautam told HT.
Based on the parents’ complaint, the police registered an FIR against the suspect, a resident of East Mustafabad Colony in Loni.
The FIR was registered under sections 75(1)(i) (sexual harassment), 352 (intentional insult to provoke breach of peace), and 351(3) (criminal intimidation) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and under provisions of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (Pocso) at Loni police station.
“Based on the statement of the girl and the medical examination reports, police added BNS Section 64 (rape). The suspect was arrested from near the Loni bus stand based on CCTV footage and manual intelligence,” ACP added.