BHUBANESWAR: The man accused of raping a 26-year-old woman by holding her at gunpoint about four days ago was shot and injured by police in an encounter at Bharatpur-Chandaka Road on the outskirts of Bhubaneswar on Saturday, after he allegedly tried to stab a sub-inspector with a screwdriver while attempting to flee.
The accused, identified as Sreedhar Panda alias Santosh (24), was intercepted by a police team on the road around 3.45 pm. Panda allegedly lunged at the sub-inspector with the screwdriver, following which the officer fired two rounds in self-defence. Panda sustained bullet injuries on his right leg and was rushed to Capital Hospital, where his condition is stated to be stable.
A native of Jagannathprasad in Ganjam district, Panda had been living in a rented house at Chakeisiani in Mancheswar area. He has been a petty criminal and earlier arrested by Khandagiri and Tamando police in 2023 for theft. According to police, Panda entered the victim’s rented room in Gada Sahi around 7 pm after noticing that the door was not fully latched. He was noticed and confronted by the woman. With his face covered by a towel, he allegedly threatened her with a firearm and demanded her laptop and mobile phone.
When she refused, he overpowered and raped her at gunpoint, police said.
He then threatened her against disclosing the incident to anyone and fled by scaling the boundary wall at the back of the building.
Police said more details emerged after his arrest. After escaping, Panda allegedly walked to a nearby flyover and boarded an Ama Bus to Fire Station Square. He then took an auto-rickshaw to Market Building, where he stole a motorcycle in an attempt to leave the city. He also picked up packed food from a roadside hotel and returned to his residence in the evening.
After having dinner, he met his landlord and asked him not to tell anyone that he was still staying there, and not to share his mobile number with anyone, police said.
Panda left for his native village in Ganjam where his mother lives alone. Police said his mother is suffering from a brain tumour, his father is dead and he has no siblings. As the sole earning member of the family, Panda allegedly decided to take the risk of returning to Bhubaneswar to resume work.
“After examining more than 300 CCTV cameras and analysing a huge volume of technical data, Panda’s sole involvement in the rape case was established and we were on his trail. He was arrested and further probe is underway,” said Bhubaneswar DCP Saravana Vivek M.