Seven held for obstructing police from arresting rape accused in UP village

Bulandshahr (UP), Sep 10 (PTI) Seven persons have been arrested here for allegedly obstructing police from arresting a rape accused and helping him escape, officials said on Wednesday.

The arrests were made based on video that surfaced online and CCTV camera recordings of the incident.

According to Superintendent of Police (Rural) Dr. Tejveer Singh, a team from Ahmedgarh police station had gone to Chehla village on September 4 to arrest a wanted rape accused, Afzal.

However, village head Mohammad Rauf and some other residents allegedly obstructed the police, allowing Afzal to flee. A case was registered against the village head and others for hindering a police operation.

"After identifying the culprits from the viral video and CCTV footage, police arrested seven of the accused on Wednesday," said the officer.

Efforts are underway to identify and apprehend the remaining individuals involved in the incident, he added.

Afzal (40) was booked for raping a 23-year-old woman on August 29. He is still at large. Police teams are trying to arrest him, the officer added. PTI COR CDN HIG HIG