Mathura, April 5 (IANS) Police in Mathura arrested a 29-year-old man, accused of raping and robbing a woman from Haryana, following an encounter, officials said on Sunday.
The accused, identified as Pawan Kumar, a resident of Mal Farah village in Mathura, sustained a bullet injury in his leg during the exchange of fire and has been admitted to a hospital for treatment.
According to police, a team from Jaint police station, led by Inspector-in-Charge Umesh Chandra Tripathi, along with the Mission Shakti unit, was conducting routine checking near Suncity on Saturday night.
At around 9:53 p.m., the team signalled a motorcyclist to stop on suspicion. Instead of complying, the suspect attempted to flee by turning his bike around and allegedly opened fire at the police.
Officials said the police retaliated, and a bullet struck the accused in the leg, forcing him to fall and enabling his arrest at the spot.
During interrogation, police found that Pawan Kumar had created a fake identity on social media under the name Abhay Fauji.
Using this alias, he allegedly threatened a woman from Palwal district in Haryana, warning of killing her family, and coerced her into meeting him at Chhatikara.
Police said that from there, he took the woman on his motorcycle to a guest house identified as Raj Guest House, where he raped her inside a room before abandoning her near the Chhatikara bridge.
Investigators further revealed that the accused transferred Rs 15,000 online from the woman’s phone. In addition, he allegedly took away Rs 4,000 in cash along with her earrings before fleeing.
During the arrest, police recovered a country-made pistol, two empty shells, one live cartridge and the motorcycle used in the crime from the accused.
Circle Officer (Sadar) Pitampal Singh said the accused has a long criminal history, with 11 serious cases registered against him, including rape, attempt to murder, robbery and offences under the NDPS Act in Mathura as well as in Bharatpur district of Rajasthan, including Kotwali, Chiksana and Kumher police station areas.
The police team involved in the operation included Jaint police station in-charge Umesh Chandra Tripathi, Inspector Vivek Kumar, women sub-inspectors Kajal Bhardwaj and Priya Siwach, along with members of the surveillance unit.
Officials confirmed that the injured accused has been shifted to a hospital in Vrindavan, where he is undergoing treatment under police supervision.
–IANS
