Car driver among three arrested for raping researcher at ITO in October | India News – Times of India

NEW DELHI: In a major breakthrough, Delhi Police have arrested three men in connection with the brutal gang rape of a 34-year-old woman researcher from Odisha, reported on October 11. Their investigation revealed that the incident took place near ITO and the woman, who suffers from mental illness, was dumped in a car in south-east Delhi’s Sarai Kale Khan. The survivor continues to be treated at a central government hospital, police said.
Police said two of the suspects, one of whom was drunk, plotted to rape the woman when they found her alone. They allegedly forcibly took her to a remote area and attacked her. An autorickshaw driver, who witnessed the act, allegedly raped the woman in his car before dropping her off at Sarai Kale Khan, where she was found. TOI had reported the incident on October 12.
The arrested men include the car driver, Prabhu Mahto (28); a scrap dealer, Pramod Babu (32); and a beggar, Mohammed Shamshul (29). They were tracked down using CCTV analysis, technical surveillance and human information networks. Investigators have found crucial evidence linked to the crime. The autorickshaw has also been seized.
Crucial physical evidence, including the survivor’s blood-stained clothes consisting of trousers and salwar, has also been seized in addition to the clothes worn by the suspect at the time of the crime. These include clothes from Mahto, Pramod and Shamsul and the latter’s cap, belt and shoes.
3 fingers, ‘station’, car: how officers saw through ‘blind case’
The survivor of the gruesome gang rape lay silently in a bed at the AIIMS Trauma Center, lost in thoughts. A group of officers waited outside, hoping she would say something that would help them catch her attackers. It was a blind case. Forget the identity or number of attackers, even the time and place of the crime were not known.
The woman had been found in Sarai Kale Khan in a battered condition, in pain and unable or unwilling to speak. Constable Sangeeta went to the department in the guise of a social worker. After consultation with the management of the AIIMS Trauma Centre, the police also roped in an Odia translator as a nurse. The two were assigned to care for the survivor while building trust and gathering information.

It took a moment for the survivor to open up. She showed three fingers when asked how many men had attacked her. “One of them was disabled and they had a car,” she told the undercover duo. She also said the word ‘station’. She could not reveal other details, such as the time and place of the rape, due to her pre-existing mental health issues and the trauma of her horrific experience.
Joint Commissioner of Police Sanjay Jain formed a special team led by DCP Ravi Kumar Singh and ACP Aishwarya Singh and ten sub-teams to pursue the case. Sub-inspector Shubham Chaudhary prepared a site plan, which identified more than 700 government and private CCTV cameras installed on major and secondary roads, starting from the point where the woman was discovered on October 11. The researchers got their first clue when they found CCTV footage. whereupon the victim leaves the waiting room of the Old Delhi Railway Station at 10.14 am on October 10.
The team then analyzed CCTV footage at Kashmiri Gate, Red Fort, Daryaganj, Mahatma Gandhi Marg, Rajghat-Shantivan, Rajghat Depot Bypass, ITO, Mathura Road, PWD headquarters, DTC headquarters, Indraprastha depot and the petrol and CNG pumps between ITO and Sarai Kale Khan. This helped create an electronic map of the route that may have been taken by the survivor.
After minutely studying the woman’s possible route, over 150 autorickshaws, identified by both visible and non-visible license plate numbers, were verified. The breakthrough came when an autorickshaw was spotted parked near the crime scene. The same car was then seen driving and stopping at a different location.
“This is where the driver left the vehicle and crossed the road,” DCP Singh said. “We obtained a partial registration plate at this location. After persistent efforts, the autorickshaw was correctly identified with number DL1RAA 9327 and the driver was identified to be Prabhu Mahto during the night of October 10-11.” The registration data was used to track down the driver. An officer explained that Mahto’s cellphone location was tracked and matched the spot on the CCTV footage.
Sustained efforts were made to locate the suspect and Mahto was arrested on October 30. He was interrogated at length and he helped police identify and nab the second suspect, Pramod alias Babu, on November 2. The third man is said to be involved in the murder. crime, Mohmmad Shamshul, was arrested on November 4. The successful manhunt had lasted 21 days.
“We will ensure that the suspects receive the harshest punishment available under the law,” a senior officer said. According to the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, anyone accused of involvement in gang rape can be punished with rigorous imprisonment for a term of not less than twenty years, which may extend to life, which amounts to imprisonment for the remainder of that person’s natural life. In addition, a fine may be charged.