Thane: Guard arrested for ‘molesting’ four-year-old girl

Kapurbawadi police said the accused, Kartiki Manavendra Sarkar, was arrested on Friday.

A 37-YEAR-OLD MAN has been arrested for allegedly sexually assaulting a four-year-old girl in Thane. Police said the man, a security guard in the private housing society where the child stays, allegedly took her to eighth floor stairway and sexually assaulted her. Kapurbawadi police said the accused, Kartiki Manavendra Sarkar, was arrested on Friday.

“We have received a complaint from the victim’s mother. She alleged that on April 11, the accused took her daughter to the stairway on the eighth floor, which is generally deserted, and touched her inappropriately,” a police officer said.

“He used to reside near the housing complex. He is originally from West Bengal. We are investigating if he has any past antecedents,” the officer added.

Sarkar has been booked under certain sections of Protection of Children from Sexual Offence (POCSO) Act-2012. He was produced before the sessions court on Friday, which sent him to police custody till April 17.

The police are investigating if the accused had targeted other children in the society. “He knew which part of the building would be empty… He allegedly lured the child with a chocolate. It seems he knew what he was doing. We have urged parents to speak to their children and report if he has misbehaved with any child,” a senior officer privy to the case said.