MARGAO
In a daring midnight robbery, a lone assailant brutally attacked a woman with a sharp cutter in the heart of the commercial capital before decamping with a laptop and mobile.
In swift action, the Margao police arrested a native of Tamil Nadu, Shishi Kumar (29), after he was found moving suspiciously along the Margao railway station road. The police later recovered the stolen laptop and mobile phone.
But what has raised serious questions about the robbery is that the accused used to sleep on the Margao municipal benches, bringing to the fore suspicions that anti-social elements and drunkards have made the iconic garden their second home.
The incident is believed to have occurred between 2.30 am and 3 am, when the robber gained entry into the house at Comba by removing the roof tiles. Once inside, he assaulted the lone woman staying in the house, Cony Pacheco, and slit her throat with a sharp cutter. She has sustained seven stitches on her throat. The assailant also assaulted her and tried to suffocate her to death.
The victim told the media that the accused told her she would die within half an hour as he stood outside the house after committing the crime. Taking advantage of the situation, the alert victim closed the door from inside and rushed out through the rear door to head to the neighbour’s house.
The neighbours immediately informed the Margao police, which is located just around 10-200 metres from the scene of the crime. The victim was immediately rushed to the South Goa district hospital.
Neighbours informed that an attempt was made to break into the house on Monday last through the water pipeline, but it was not successful.
“I am staying alone in the house as my parents have passed away. The medium-built accused beat me up and attacked me with a sharp cutter. As blood started oozing out after the cutter attack on my throat, I was afraid of the man. He even tried to suffocate me with a bed sheet,” the victim recalled the horror.
The victim said the accused had decamped with a laptop and a mobile after committing the robbery.
Meanwhile, Margao Police Station in-charge, PI Suraj Samant, told the media that the police nabbed the accused when he was moving along the Station Road with the stolen items. “After interrogation, it has come to light that the accused had come to Goa from Tamil Nadu and was taking shelter at the Margao municipal garden,” PI Samant informed.
