A 27-year-old man has been arrested by the Delhi Police for allegedly physically and sexually assaulting a 70-year-old woman after breaking into her house in central Delhi’s Ranjit Nagar on Saturday.
Senior officers said the accused, Mukesh Singh, was arrested on Monday.
Police said the elderly woman usually lives alone at her residence and had met the accused, who works as a waiter with catering companies at weddings, a few days ago when he came to her door asking for water.
According to the police, last week on Saturday, a call was received at Ranjit Nagar police station about the sexual assault.
DCP (central) Rohit Rajbir Singh said, “The woman caller told us that she was physically assaulted by a man. A police team promptly reached the spot and shifted the complainant to SVBP Hospital in Patel Nagar where her medico-legal examination (MLC) was conducted. The examination revealed injuries consistent with physical assault, and accordingly, a case was registered.”
Police said that initially, an FIR was lodged under sections of voluntarily causing hurt and criminal intimidation.
“On Sunday, the woman and her daughter came to us. The daughter said her mother was also sexual assaulted by the accused. In view of the new facts, the complainant was again taken for medical examination, where the sexual assault was confirmed. We then added BNS Section 76 (assault or criminal force against woman with intent to disrobe her) to the FIR,” said the DCP.
Investigators said the elderly woman later revealed that she first met the accused on April 9. “He came to her house on the pretext of asking for water and she helped him. On Saturday, he forcefully entered her house, assaulted her and raped her,” said an officer.
Police said a team was formed to trace the accused.
“The team examined CCTV footage and found the suspect entering and exiting the complainant’s residence around the time of the incident. With the help of multiple CCTV cameras and technical surveillance, the suspect’s movement was tracked and he was arrested from Pandav Nagar area on Monday,” said DCP Singh.
On Wednesday, the accused was produced before the court and sent to judicial custody.
“He revealed that he had earlier visited the complainant’s residence and found that she lived alone. So, he went there on Saturday and sexually assaulted her,” said the DCP.