Man gets 14 yrs jail for raping homeless woman

Trichy: Trichy mahila court on Wednesday sentenced an autorickshaw driver to 14 years of rigorous imprisonment for sexually assaulting a homeless woman six years ago. The accused, S Sathish Kumar, 42, from Viswas Nagar, Tharanallur, lured her by promising a job and assaulted her at knifepoint.Sources said the survivor, a 23-year-old homeless woman with mental illness, was living near Central Bus Stand. Noticing that she was living alone and wandering places, Sathish Kumar, then 36, befriended her. On Jan 15, 2020, he took her to an isolated place near Viswas Nagar and sexually assaulted her at knife point before fleeing. The woman, who was bleeding due to the assault, sought help from passersby. Police rescued the woman, and based on her complaint, identified Sathish Kumar and arrested him. A case was registered at Fort All Women Police Station and the chargesheet filed later that year. The trial went on for more than five years and Sathish Kumar was found guilty. On Wednesday, judge D Shanmuga Priya sentenced him to 14 years of rigorous imprisonment under IPC sections 376(2)(L) and 376(2)(M) for sexually assaulting a mentally challenged woman and sexually assaulting while causing bodily harm. She also sentenced him to 10 years under section 367 for abduction and ordered him to undergo the sentences concurrently. She also imposed a fine of Rs25,000 on him.