Delhi: 5 booked for gangrape of American

New Delhi: The Delhi police booked five men, including a tourist guide and a hotel attendant, for the alleged gangrape of an American woman at a five-star hotel in Delhi in April, an official said on Saturday.

The decision to register a first information report (FIR) was taken after the police went through a fresh complaint that was emailed by the woman to the Delhi police on Saturday and thereafter she was contacted in person. A similar complaint was filed on her behalf by a US-based NGO and emailed to the police chief last week. An FIR under appropriate sections of IPC has been filed in the case. The police has identified all the five suspects named in the complaint. “The prime suspect is the tourist guide. He is a resident of Delhi but he is presently out of Delhi,” said a senior officer, adding that a team has been tasked to trace him. The other suspects include the hotel attendant, a cousin and friend of the tourist guide, and one other who worked in the tourist bus that the American woman and her friends had hired.

In her compliant, the American woman has expressed her willingness to travel to Delhi and record her statement, police said. She had come to India as a tourist with her friends. They had booked services of an India-based tourist agency and the tourist guide was working for that agency.

The woman has said that the guide befriended her while showing her tourist spots in Delhi and the adjoining states. She said that on the night of the incident, he entered her room with four friends, also related to the travel agency, on the pretext of discussing their next day’s journey. They had drinks, after which, the tourist guide tried to force himself on her. When she protested, the five beat her up and took turns to rape her. After she regained consciousness, the five, before leaving the room, threatened her with dire consequences if she reported the matter.