KALABURAGI: Three police personnel were suspended after a POCSO case accused escaped from Afzalpur Police Station in Karnataka's Kalaburagi district in the early hours of Thursday.
According to police sources, the accused, Manjunath, a resident of a village under the Afzalpur Police Station limits, allegedly eloped with a minor girl after promising to marry her and took her to Pune. Based on a complaint filed by the girl's parents, a case was registered at Afzalpur Police Station.
During the investigation, police traced the accused and the minor girl to Pune in Maharashtra. A police team, along with the girl's parents, brought both of them back to Afzalpur on Wednesday evening. The girl was admitted to a government hospital for medical examination, while the accused was detained at the police station for questioning.
According to the police, the accused managed to free himself from his handcuffs while police personnel were asleep. He then climbed to the second floor of the police station and escaped by climbing down a neem tree next to the building.
The entire incident was captured on CCTV cameras.
Speaking with TNIE, Kalaburagi SP Adduru Srinivasalu said police teams led by senior officers have been formed to search for the accused in Kalaburagi district and Maharashtra.
He said the head constable and two constables attached to Afzalpur Police Station have been suspended for dereliction of duty, while a notice has been issued to the police sub-inspector of the station.
BJP Legislative Council Chief Whip N Ravikumar, who is in Kalaburagi, demanded the immediate suspension of the Afzalpur Police Station PSI for alleged dereliction of duty.