Husband Was Present... Group Sexual Assault of Spanish Tourist, Suspect Arrested

During Camping in the Forest with Husband, Assailants Invade
Police Arrest Some Suspects "Special Investigation Team Formed"

Four suspects have been arrested for the gang rape of a Spanish female tourist traveling in India with her husband.

On the night of the 1st, local time, AFP and local media reported that a 35-year-old woman camping with her husband in Dumka District, Jharkhand state in eastern India, was suddenly attacked and raped by intruders.

Members of an Indian civic group protesting the handling of a sexual assault case
[Photo by EPA Yonhap News]

The couple was camping in a forest about 2 km away from a main road. After the incident, the victim escaped and reported to the nearby police, and she is currently receiving treatment at a nearby hospital. The husband, who was also assaulted and treated at the hospital, testified that at least seven men committed the crime.

The police stated, "Four suspects have been arrested and they have confessed," adding that they are pursuing the remaining suspects and have formed a Special Investigation Team (SIT) for the arrests.

The couple shared the incident on social media (SNS) through a video. It is reported that they had started traveling in India several months ago after leaving Spain.

In the video, the woman said, "Something unwanted happened to us. Seven men raped me. We are at the hospital with the police."

In December 2012, a 23-year-old female college student in New Delhi, the capital of India at the time, was gang-raped and physically mutilated by five adult men and a teenage boy on a bus, and was left on the street, sparking worldwide outrage.

Since then, the Indian government amended the law to allow the death penalty for rapists, but sexual assaults against women still frequently occur in India.

According to government statistics, about 90 cases of rape occur daily nationwide in 2022. However, experts believe many cases go unreported due to distrust of the Indian police and the stigma attached to rape victims.

According to BNN Breaking and others, politicians and Indian citizens alike are urging that perpetrators face legal action and that judicial procedures be strengthened to prevent such incidents from recurring.