Man absconding for two years in POCSO case, held using call data

Hyderabad, May 22 (PTI) An accused in a POCSO case, who was absconding since May 2023, has been arrested using using call details register (CDR) analysis, police said on Thursday.

The 25-year-old man, a catering worker, had allegedly raped the 11-year-old girl, at an acquaintance’s house in Visakhapatnam and fled, they said.

“Through meticulous CDR analysis of the accused, after two years of efforts the (police) team successfully tracked down the suspect. The accused was apprehended on May 21 while he was visiting his grandmother at a hospital in Secunderabad area,” DCP (Balanagar Zone) K Suresh Kumar said in a release.

A case was earlier registered against him under relevant sections of POCSO Act based on the complaint filed by the victim’s father.

The complainant stated that the accused used a neighbour to pass messages and facilitate phone calls between him and his daughter.

He convinced the victim to elope, suggesting they take money from her home to "enjoy holidays", police said based on the complaint.

Following his directions, she packed her school bag, took Rs 30,000 from her mother’s box, and the accused allegedly took her to Secunderabad railway station on May 22, 2023, where they boarded a train to Visakhapatnam.

In Visakhapatnam, the accused allegedly took her to an acquaintance’s house, confined her and raped her twice, police said.

On May 29, 2023, they returned to Secunderabad by train. At the station, the accused asked her to wait while he fetched water but he gave a slip, police said. The victim borrowed a stranger’s phone and called her father, who rescued her and later reported the incident to the police, the release added. PTI VVK VVK ADB