Berhampur: Two minor cousins were allegedly raped by four miscreants after abducting the duo in Odisha’s Ganjam district, police said Friday.
The incident came to light after the mother of one of the victims lodged a complaint at Golanthara police station Thursday evening. After registering a case, police launched a manhunt to arrest the accused persons, a police officer said.
The victims, aged between 11 to 15 years, along with family members had attended a marriage function Tuesday night in a village. While one of the victims belonged to the nearby village, the other one’s village was about 40 km from the incident site, he said.
At least two person, one of them earlier known to a victim lured them and they went missing. As they did not return till late night, worried family members searched them in the nearby areas, the police said.
He further said the accused persons took them to a nearby location in their motorbikes and held them captive. The accused persons were allegedly sexually assaulted before abandoning them.
The victims, however, managed to return home on Wednesday early morning and recounted their ordeal to family members, when they repeatedly asked about them their whereabouts in the night.
Family members of the victim then decided to lodge a police complaint. The accused persons fled from the village after they came to know about the police case against them, the officer said.
Berhampur SP Saravana Vivek M said they have formed two police teams and launched a manhunt to nab the accused persons. Police have identified the accused persons and will arrest them soon, he said.
The police have also recorded the statements of the victims about the incident and their medical examination is being conducted, the SP said.
