Maharashtra: 16-yr-old gangraped by Anees Shaikh, met on social media, his friend in Nalasopara

Mumbai: A 16-year-old girl was gang-raped by two persons in Nalasopara area of neighbouring Palghar district of Maharashtra and one of the accused has been arrested, an official said on Tuesday.

According to police, accused Anees Shaikh and Jian, while committing the offence, made a video and blackmailed the victim by threatening to release it if she approached the police.

According to the police, the girl a resident of Malad had met accused Shaikh, through social media in August and befriended him. According to her statement to police on September 2, Shaikh called her to Nalasopara for a tuition class. When the girl went to meet him, Shaikh took her to a lodge and allegedly raped her.

On September 5, Anees invited her again and, along with Jian, took her on a bike to a lodge in Arnala. There, Anees allegedly raped her again, and Jian recorded the incident on video while also physically assaulting her. According to the police officials, the accused used it to blackmail her to keep quiet about the incident. He reportedly said, "If you tell anyone about this, then it will be bad."

The Achole Police Station has filed a case against both of them, accusing them of violating several provisions of the BNS as well as the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO) Act, based on the victim’s statement.

(Inputs from Agencies)