Rayagada: Outrage has erupted in Rayagada after a married woman was allegedly raped late Tuesday night following a deceitful offer of shelter by a youth who has since been detained by police.
According to reports, a couple from Bandhugaon block in Koraput district—who had been working in Tamil Nadu for the past few months—were returning home and reached Rayagada on Tuesday evening. Around 8 pm, while they waited at the Rayagada bus stand for transport to Bandhugaon, an unknown youth approached them.
He reportedly warned them that no vehicles would be available at that hour and that it would be unsafe to linger at the bus stand. Claiming that his house was nearby, he invited the couple to stay the night and leave for their village early in the morning. As the man belonged to the same community, the couple trusted him and accepted the offer.
The youth allegedly made the woman sit at a nearby shop and took the husband elsewhere on the pretext of bringing snacks. After making the husband wait for an unusually long time and then failing to return, the husband rushed back to the shop — only to find his wife missing. Bystanders informed him that she had left with the same youth.
Police said the youth had taken the woman to a forested area near Koilashahi in Rayagada, where he raped her.
A distraught husband continued searching for his wife until she returned weeping and narrated the ordeal. He immediately lodged a complaint at Rayagada police station.
Following the FIR, a team led by Rayagada SDPO Gaurahari Sahu, along with a scientific squad, visited the crime spot. Investigators recovered a handkerchief and a cap believed to belong to the accused.
Police have detained the youth for interrogation, registered a case, and sent the survivor for medical examination. Further investigation is underway.
