Food Delivery Man Arrested For Allegedly Raping 6-Year-Old Girl

A 19-year-old food delivery man has been arrested in India for allegedly raping a minor on the terrace of her apartment building.

The accused, identified as Lokchandan Sahu, was delivering an order from a nearby restaurant to the victim’s apartment complex in Mumbai, India. Sahu, who had visited the building several times before, noticed the 6-year-old girl playing alone outside her house in the stairwell around 10 p.m. Tuesday.

According to the police, Sahu called the girl and asked for her help with a delivery address. After the girl provided the accused with direction, he pretended to get lost, according to the Times of India. He then asked her to direct him. At some point, he took her to the building’s terrace and proceeded to sexually assault her.

Later, the minor confided in her mother. The mother asked around the building complex to determine the identity of the assailant. After confirming that it was a delivery boy from the restaurant, she took the girl to a police station and filed a complaint against Sahu.

"We have arrested the accused based on the description and details provided by the survivor," said the senior inspector of the police station to The Indian Express.

Sahu was taken into custody Wednesday and charged with rape, an unnatural offense. He has also been charged under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act.

Last month, a man from Uttar Pradesh in India was arrested for allegedly raping a 9-year-old girl during a dinner party hosted by the minor’s family. The suspect allegedly arrived at the minor’s home with his wife and son. He then lured the victim away from her family and raped her. He threatened the girl not to say anything to her family. However, the girl sustained painful injuries caused by the assault. She told her grandmother about the pain and the incident. The victim's family filed a complaint against the man soon after.

According to a report by the non-profit child rights organization, CRY, a sexual offense is committed against a child in India every 15 minutes. In 2020, police registered a total of 128,531 cases of crimes committed against children, according to the Indian National Crimes Record Bureau.