Goa Children’s Court on Tuesday convicted one Mangesh Wadekar (28), resident of Headland-Sada, Vasco, in a March 2015 case of raping his 10-year-old neighbour.
Wadekar has been convicted under Section 506 (ii) (criminal intimidation) and 376 (rape) of Indian Penal Code, Section 8 (2) (child sexual assault) of Goa Children’s Act and Section 3 (penetrative sexual assault) and 4 of Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act.
As per the chargesheet filed by Mormugao Police, the accused on March 3, 2015, sexually assaulted the minor girl in his rented room near Britto Bar at Headland-Sada and threatened her with dire consequences if she disclosed the fact to anyone.
The prosecution examined 11 witnesses in support of its case, including the investigating officer police inspector Kapil Naik.
After the girl’s father lodged a complaint on March 5, 2015, an offence was booked and Wadekar was placed under arrest on March 6. He has since been in judicial custody at sub-jail, Sada.
The medical examination report of the girl stated that ‘penetration cannot be ruled out and opinion as to recent sexual intercourse can be given’.
During the investigation that followed, it came to light that the girl lived in a rented room adjacent to the accused along with her younger sister and her father, who worked as a labourer on fishing trawlers. The girls had lost their mother. The father used to leave for work in the morning and would return home only by 5 to 6 pm. During the day, the two girls used to be alone at home and were regularly visited by their grandmother, who lived nearby.
The matter came to light two days after the said offence, when the girl disclosed vague details of the incident to her grandmother. The grandmother informed the father, who inquired about the same with his daughter. She complained of severe stomach aches and said that she has suffered bleeding since the incident.
The matter has been posted to January 4 for arguments on the quantum of sentence.
