Attendant held for raping 20-year-old at COVID-19 quarantine centre in Thane

Thane: A 27-year-old attendant at a COVID-19 quarantine centre in Maharashtra’s Thane district has been arrested for allegedly raping a woman at the facility, police said on Sunday. The incident took place in June, but came to light on Saturday when the 20-year-old woman lodged a police complaint, inspector Sampat Patil of Navghar police station said. The woman in her complaint alleged that the accused committed the offence while she was attending to an 11-year- old relative who was lodged at the quarantine centre, located in Mira Road area here, the official said. According to the police, the woman was staying in a room at the facility along with her 10-month-old daughter to take care of the relative who tested positive for coronavirus. The accused used to visit the room at night under the pretext of giving hot water. He allegedly made advances towards the woman, but she resisted his move following which he threatened to kill her child, Patil said. He allegedly raped the woman in the room on three occasions in the first week of June, the official said. The woman did not approach police at that time as she was afraid the accused would harm her family members. She lodged a police complaint on Saturday following which the accused was arrested and a case was registered against him under Indian Penal Code Section 376 (rape) and other relevant provisions, the official said.