After initial denial, Noida police confirm women raped during Jewar robbery
a shift from its earlier stance, the Noida Police on Sunday claimed four women were gang-raped in Jewar around 1.30am on the night of May 25. The police had drawn sharp criticism after they denied gang-rape during a press conference on May 26 citing preliminary medical reports.
The police changed its claim on a day four people were arrested after an early morning encounter in connection with the May 25 incident.
Eight people in a car were robbed, held hostage and four women were allegedly gangraped by a gang of six robbers on the Jewar-Bulandshahr Road near the Yamuna Expressway on the fateful night.
One person was killed and another sustained a bullet injury on his leg reportedly while resisting the robbery. The women, in the age group of 28 to 52 years, were dragged to a nearby field and raped.
In the Jewar case, the robbers had followed the same modus operandi seen during the Bulandshahr gang-rape incident near Dostpur late on July 29 in 2016. A woman and her daughter were raped after being taken captive in the fields near NH-91.
“We claim the women were raped based on the statements of the victims given before the magistrate (under CrPC 164) and also on the basis of the circumstantial evidence as they were taken to a nearby field away from the male members... During the forensic examination, the experts also found traces of semen on the clothes of two victims. These will now be matched with the DNA fingerprinting of the accused and will take time,” said Love Kumar, senior superintendent of police (SSP), Gautam Budh Nagar.
The six suspects — four arrested and two absconding — will also face charges of gang rape as they were present at the scene of crime. The police said that they expect to soon nab the two unidentified men, who accompanied the robbers during the Jewar incident.
The SSP said that the victims have also identified their jewellery, mobile phones and also the accused at the police station where they were taken after the encounter.
“All the four men were involved in the crime that took place on May 25. We were called for identification and we recognised them. However, the jewellery recovered from them does not belong to us. They might have robbed the jewellery from someone else. The two mobile phones that were snatched have also been identified,” said a male member, who was beaten by the robbers during the incident.
The SSP said that the identification parade of the accused will be conducted soon.
The police claimed the suspects were members of Bawariya gang like the Bulandshahr robbery and gang-rape incident. The accused used khadanja (a leather strap filled with nails) and axle to puncture the victim’s car tyres and stop them midway.
Such gangs are common and travel distances in areas near the borders of Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Haryana. During the course of investigation, the police and teams from Uttar Pradesh special task force scanned nearly a dozen similar gangs operating in the three states.
All the four men were involved in the crime that took place on May 25. We were called for identification and we recognised them.