Chandigarh, February 2: The 21-year-old supermarket salesman arrested for allegedly raping his 12-year-old neighbour in Chandigarh’s Daddu Majra Colony on Wednesday has confessed to sexually assaulting more children, the police said on Thursday.
“The accused, Shammi Kumar, a salesman at Bansal Superstore in Sector 7, Chandigarh, has confessed to sexually assaulting more minor girls living in his neighbourhood over the past two years,” investigating officer sub-inspector Ashok said.
The police claimed that Kumar disclosed during interrogation that he assaulted a girl six months ago and another a year before that. But the remaining victims have not come forward.
Investigators said the accused lived in the colony’s Char Manzila quarters with other families, giving him easy access to minor girls, one of whom, a 16-year-old, was his girlfriend.
“The case highlights the need for parents to be vigilant and careful about their minor children, who are left alone at home while they are away at work. Incidents like these are on the rise in colonies in Chandigarh,” the sub-inspector added.
Kumar allegedly raped the Class 6 student when her parents were away at work on Wednesday.
He knocked at her door around 10am saying he was looking for an accommodation for rent. He asked her for a glass of water when the girl replied in the negative and tried to close the main door.
As she left to get the water, Kumar bolted the door from the inside and raped the girl, before fleeing the house, the police said.
They said the 12-year-old girl was initially afraid of filing a complaint, as Kumar had threatened her with dire consequences.
A local court on Thursday sent Kumar to 14-days judicial custody.
Kumar was accompanied by 13 of his family members, including two siblings, his paternal uncle, aunts and cousins, who claimed that he had been falsely implicated.
They said Kumar was away to work at the time of the crime and couldn’t have been involved.
Source Hindustan Times
