Mumbai: 65-year-old man held in Karnataka for sexually assaulting mentally challenged woman

Mumbai: A 65-year-old man was arrested by the Worli police for allegedly sexually assaulting a 47-year-old mentally challenged woman. The arrested accused was wanted for more than a month. The police team traced the accused in Karnataka state where he was arrested, the police said.

The police said the accused identified as Abdul Gani Bhagwan (65), used to reside in a footpath near Marshal lane in Worli. The police said the incident was reported in the last week of April 2021. The accused allegedly inappropriately touched the woman and tried to sexually assault her.

"Locals who found him doing the act, tried to stop him. But he ran away from the spot. He fled to a rural area in Karnataka, but was not allowed in the village due lockdown restriction. The accused then fled to another village", an official said. "With the help of local sources, we traced his location. A team arrested the accused from Karnataka with the help of his photograph", he added.

The Worli police had registered a case on April 27 under section 354 and 354 (b) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). "We have arrested him on June 13, Sunday. He was produced in court and remanded police custody," said a police officer.

Under the guidance of Anil Koli, Senior Police Inspector, a team of Worli police station comprising of Vishwas Dhumal, police sub-inspector including police constable Sandeep Bugade, Alankar Jadhav arrested the accused.