Amboli gangrape: Scared locals turn on ‘mute mode’ for cops

Three days after a woman was allegedly gangraped by eight men at a slum in Amboli, Andheri (west), neighbours who helped her and her husband afterwards, are now wary of cooperating with the police in their investigation.

Afraid of facing the wrath of the accused men who reside in the same area, locals had been reluctant to speak up against them and turn witness in the case.

On the other hand, the Andheri Magistrate Court on Friday extended the police custody of all the eight accused to November 7. The police have sought the extension of the custody of the accused claiming that they were not cooperating in the investigation. “Most of the accused men’s time in custody went in their medical tests. Hence, we need more time to interrogate them further,” stated the remand application.

Sources from the Amboli police station revealed that on visiting the area for interrogation, the neighbours of the victim’s relative refused to speak about the incident.

“None of the residents are ready to talk or be witness. We suspect it is because of the terror created by the accused who are residents of the area and indulge in illegal activities routinely,” stated the remand application. Meanwhile, police sources also revealed that the rape survivor was raped six times by five of the eight accused. The rape survivor’s statement, accessed by The Asian Age, states that on the day of incident, she and her husband had gone house-hunting in Shyam Nagar area. Later, they visited one of her relatives who resides in a shanty in the same area and decided to put up at her place for the night.

“At about 9.30 pm my aunt, at whose house we were staying, left for her night shift job at a hospital. My husband and I were sitting and talking when around 10.30 pm we heard a knock on the door. Before we could open the door, it was kicked open and a man wearing a white vest entered followed by seven other men,” states the rape survivor.

“Three of the men beat me up and dragged my husband out. They then pushed me on the bed, removed my clothes and raped me. One of them held my hand and threatened to kill my husband if I shout,” she states. She further adds that each of the five accused took turns raping her. One of them even raped her twice.

The rape survivor went on to say that the men left only when they heard a woman’s scream outside. “After they left, I somehow managed to go out and look for my husband. I found him a little away from the shanty. By then the neighbours joined us and one of the women offered me water,” she states.