15-year-old girl gang-raped in Palghar; two held

15-year-old girl gang-raped in Palghar; two held

A 15-year-old girl was allegedly repeatedly raped by two men she befriended on social media in Maharashtra's Palghar district, police said on Tuesday.

The district rural police on Monday arrested the accused from Talasari under section 376 (rape) and other relevant provisions of the Indian Penal Code and Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, an official said.

Both men are in their mid-20s, the official said.

One of the accused befriended the victim on Instagram, and on April 30, he took her to his house, where he raped her, he said. On May 4, the two accused repeatedly raped the girl at different locations, the official said.

The duo had used fake names to identify themselves, but based on intelligence and technical inputs, the police zeroed in on them, he said.

The accused have been remanded to police custody till May 9, and further probe is underway, the official said.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)