Three neighbours held for sexually assaulting 12-yr-old for 3 months

The men accused of raping the girl are friends of her father, who died three years back, and also her neighbours. After around three months of abuse, the Class 7 student disclosed her plight to her tuition teacher when she questioned the minor over her change in behaviour.

The police have arrested the trio based on an alert from the Child Helpline, which was tipped off by the tuition teacher. The helpline officials lodged a complaint with the R K Nagar police station and the case was transferred to the Washermenpet all women police station.

The girl was living with her mother after the death of her father. She was often alone at home while her mother, a construction labourer, left home early in the morning and returned only late in the evening. Neighbours said that the girl always stayed indoors.

The three men would visit her home whenever she was alone and allegedly sexually abused her. The police said that the neighbours had seen them visiting the house frequently, but they never suspected anything as they were her father’s friends. The police said that the accused had threatened to kill her and warned her to not tell her mother.

The police booked the three men under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (Pocso) Act and are questioning them.