NELLORE: Within a few hours after a video of a man assaulting a 20-year-old woman went viral on social media platforms, Nellore police arrested the accused involved in the heinous act. The accused, Pallala Venkatesh, 24, was arrested on Thursday.
According to Superintendent of Police Ch Vijaya Rao, three teams were formed to trace the accused and arrest him. The teams were deployed at Kaluvoya, Somasila and Ramakotaiah Nagar in Nellore city limits. According to the SP, the victim was a friend of the accused.
“After observing the alleged mischievous activities of Venkatesh, the victim started maintaining a distance from him. Suspecting that she was in another affair, Venkatesh brought the woman to an isolated place two months ago. The accused beat up the woman with a stick and his hands and forced her to have sexual indulgence with his friends. However, the girl refused to do so and an infuriated Venkatesh asked his friend to film the incident of beating the woman on his mobile phone,” the SP said.
The video went viral on social media platforms on Wednesday. Within no time, police teams were formed to arrest the accused under the supervision of Nellore DSP J Srinivasulu Reddy and Vedayapalem Circle Inspector Rama Krishna. Venkatesh was arrested at Tegacherla village in Rapur mandal at around 10 am. Venkatesh is a lorry driver, police said.
With no complaint received from the victim, police registered a cognizant case and booked the accused under relevant sections including 67 (A) of the IT ACT. Police also opened a rowdy sheet against Venkatesh. Police also took the second accused, Kotari Siva, a resident of Ramakotaiah Nagar in Nellore, who filmed the incident, into custody.
SP Vijaya Rao appreciated the efforts of the DSP and CI for arresting the accused within a few hours. SP warned that stern action would be initiated against the persons who were involved in such activities. He appealed to women and girls to install the DISHA app and inform the police if any such untoward incidents happen in their life.
