Police say suspect held for 'rape' of Pune techie was her friend, she herself took selfie

Pune, Jul 4 (PTI) Police on Friday said the suspect detained in connection with the alleged rape of a Pune IT professional at her home was her friend, casting doubts on the woman's claim that he was a stranger and had gained entry by posing as a courier delivery agent.

Police Commissioner Amitesh Kumar said neither was there any sign of forced entry nor any spray that could be used on the victim.

Moreover, the selfie in question was taken with the consent of both, and it was the victim who edited the photo and typed a threatening message on her phone after he left her place around 8.30 pm on Wednesday, the officer said.

The 22-year-old woman had claimed that a man who posed as a courier delivery agent entered her flat in the Kondhwa area on Wednesday evening when she was alone, and forced himself on her. She passed out, and when she regained consciousness, he was gone, she had said.

The woman also told police that the accused, before leaving, clicked a selfie using her phone in which her back and a part of his face are seen, and left a message warning that he had taken her pictures and would release them on social media if she reported the incident.

"During our investigation, we obtained a clear image of the accused from CCTV cameras installed on the society premises. However, when the picture was shown to the woman, she refused to identify him," Kumar said. "Despite this, our teams continued working from various angles to trace the suspect, as no one other than this individual had accessed the particular floor where the woman lives. We also showed the photo to residents of the housing society, but none of them recognised him," he added.

The police commissioner said that even though the woman denied knowing the person in the photo, "our team persisted with the investigation".

"By tracking the movement of his motorcycle across different localities and checking volumes of footage from five to six CCTV cameras, we were able to trace him near a firm in Baner," the officer said.

The suspect was detained, and technical analysis confirmed his mobile location near the victim's apartment on Wednesday, he said, adding that further verification established that he was the same person seen in the CCTV footage.

During questioning, it emerged that the man had visited the woman's house on Wednesday night with her consent. "She was aware that he was coming over, and he was not posing as a courier delivery agent. There was no forced entry, and no spray was used. He was known to the victim," the top police officer said.

About the selfie, he said that it was taken with the consent of both the woman and the accused. "It was also revealed that the text message on the photo was drafted on the victim's phone after the man had left. Prima facie, it appears that the victim herself added the text to the image." "Whether the alleged physical relations were consensual or forceful is still under investigation. However, a narrative was being pushed that an unidentified person posing as a courier agent was involved, which has now turned out to be false," Kumar added.

"When we asked the woman what led her to file such a complaint, she stated that her mental condition was unstable, and that prompted her to make the false claim," the officer said.

He added, “At this point, I cannot say what further course of action the police will take. We have not reached any conclusion yet, as several aspects of the case are still being examined." The officer also highlighted that a significant amount of manpower was deployed to trace the suspect, and large volumes of CCTV footage were scrutinised. "It is now clear that there was an attempt to mislead the investigation." PTI SPK NSD