AHMEDABAD: About three months after a 23-year-old woman from Rajkot alleged she was lured with a job offer, drugged and gang-raped, the Crime Branch has arrested the fourth accused in the case.
Jaimin Patel, a resident of Gala Acharya in South Bopal, was arrested from Amreli last Monday and remanded to four days in police custody.
Last November, a woman from Rajkot lodged a complaint with Mahila West police that Pragnesh Patel of Sola, Jeetendra Goswami of Vasna, Maldev Bharwad of Isanpur, and Jaimin Patel of South Bopal had lured her with the offer of a job then gangraped her at different places. She also alleged that Pragnesh's wife Neelam had allegedly taken away her passport and Rs 30,000 to force her into silence.
"The girl alleged that she was taken to Udaipur, Abu, Mandvi, and Gandhidham where she was gang-raped by the accused. She also alleged that the accused raped her in a moving SUV. After drugging her, they allegedly took her photographs and videos in compromising position to blackmail her,” the Crime Branch said. After the complaint was lodged, Jaimin fled from the city and went to Anand, Surat, and finally to Amreli where he fractured his hand in a fall.
ACP (Crime) D P Chudasma said “After the case was transferred to city crime branch, we arrested Pragnesh, Goswami and Bharwad while Jaimin was on the run.
Inspector J N Chavda got a tip-off that Jaimin was hiding in his native place, Mota Bhandariya in Amreli, from where he was arrested."
(The victim's identity has not been revealed to protect her privacy as per Supreme Court directives on cases related to sexual assault)