A Kerala court on Friday sentenced six persons, convicted in the 2017 abduction and rape of an actor, to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment, Bar and Bench reported.
The six convicted in the matter are NS Sunil alias Pulsur Suni, Martin Antony, B Manikandan, VP Vijeesh, H Salim and Pradeep.
After a nearly eight-year trial, Ernakulam Principal Sessions Judge Honey M Varghese on Monday found them guilty of rape, conspiracy and abduction, among other offences. The court had acquitted Malayalam film actor Dileep in the case.
“Find that considering the mitigating circumstances, there is no circumstance warranting the maximum punishment,” the judge was quoted as saying on Friday.
The convicts were also ordered to pay fines for other offences they were found guilty of.
On February 17, 2017, six men allegedly kidnapped and sexually assaulted the actor inside her car for two hours. They had allegedly also filmed the assault to blackmail the woman. Later, the woman was dropped near the home of a film director, who helped her contact the police and register a case.
Dileep was among the 10 persons accused in the case and was alleged to be the mastermind of the assault
Investigators had found that the alleged abduction and sexual assault were the result of an alleged conspiracy to intimidate and humiliate the woman.
Most of the persons accused in the matter, including NS Sunil alias Pulsur Suni, were charged under sections of the Indian Penal Code pertaining to criminal conspiracy, kidnapping and gang rape, among others. Sections of the Information Technology Act were also invoked.
Dileep had been booked for criminal conspiracy, intimidation and destruction of evidence.
The resignation of two special prosecutors and appointment of new ones had delayed the hearing. About 100 appeals against several orders of the trial court had also been filed by the prosecution, the accused men and the complainant.
Twenty-eight prosecution witnesses reportedly turned hostile during the trial.
You’ve read Scroll.
Now help sustain it
Scroll is funded by readers, not corporate owners. If you believe our work matters, support our newsroom. Become a member today!
We’re not driven by clicks or corporate interests – just honest, independent reporting. Keep us going. Support Scroll today!