CHENNAI: Three men have been arrested in connection with the alleged abduction and sexual assault of a 42-year-old woman in the Melmudhalambedu area near Gummidipoondi.
The suspects, identified as Ranjith (27), Muthukrishnan (25), and Thulasiraman (20), are residents of the same locality. According to police reports, the trio allegedly entered the woman's shop on Wednesday night, threatened her, and forcibly took her to a nearby isolated location where the assault took place.
The victim's screams alerted passersby and residents, who rushed to assist her, prompting the three men to flee the scene.
Following a formal complaint from the woman, the Gummidipoondi All Women Police registered a case and launched a search operation. The suspects were apprehended on Thursday and subsequently remanded in judicial custody by a local court. They have been lodged in Puzhal Central Prison.
Authorities have stated that the woman, who has been living alone in the village for the past decade, had been separated from her husband.