A teenager, who is the paternal uncle of a ten-year-old girl was arrested on Thursday for sexually assaulting the latter near Sholavaram in Tiruvallur.
According to police, the victim’s parents withheld the information fearing that the youth would meet the same fate as that of the Delhi rape case accused.
However, police suspicion fell on the youth after overhearing the neighbours’ gossips about his being involved in the incident. On questioning, the teenager confessed to the crime, police said.
The youth had on an earlier occasion attempted to sexually assault a 25-year-old woman. However, the victim and her husband had left the village, a senior police officer said.
On Sunday, the youth, who was a drug addict, lured the girl to a burial ground with chocolates. However, once they reached the spot, he allegedly sexually assaulted her, police said. Officials investigating the case said it was tough to nab the person as the victim’s parents and relatives were not cooperating with the investigators.
“During the inquiry the girl had not revealed much. However, we got to know that the parents of the girl had advised her in the ICU not to divulge any information,” said Senthil Kumar, ASP Ponneri. Police said they had recovered the clothes the youth had worn on the day of the incident, which had some stains. The confession of the youth was video-recorded before Ponneri deputy tahsildar Suresh Babu and VAO Umapathy.
Police said though the entire family of 10 members, including the girl’s father, knew who the offender was, they did not lodge a complaint until a doctor at a private hospital insisted on it to begin the girl’s treatment.