CHENNAI: Five more people including two women have been arrested by the Kancheepuram police for allegedly forcing a minor girl into flesh trade.
Two days ago, one of the main suspects Velankanni was arrested for allegedly promising to hire a 16-year-old girl as a maid and later forcing her into flesh trade. The incident came to light when the victim came back for Easter and narrated the incident to her aunt.
Subsequently, police registered a case and investigation revealed that the victim was forced to drop out of school due to financial constrains when her neighbour Velankanni offered to find her a job as a maid in the city.
“The neighbour, along with her accomplices, made the girl stay in a house in Kancheepuram and forced the girl into prostitution. The victim would be taken to different places in the city to meet the clients,” said a police officer.
A relative of the girl told Express that the victim was threatened by Velankanni who claimed to have taken naked pictures of the girl and would leak them if she told her parents about her ordeal. The incident came to light only a week ago when the girl refused to return to work after Easter holidays.
Later, she informed her aunt that she was forced into prostitution and told her ordeal. Police suspect the mother of the victim was also aware that her daughter was into flesh trade and demanded money from Velankanni. However, investigations are on. On Monday, police arrested five more persons - Prakash, 21, Muthukalyan, 22, Vasanth, 24, Manjula, 45 and Priya, 25 - who were also involved in the crime.