Mumbai: Nagpada police have arrested a man accused of raping a 16-year-old girl near Mumbai Central railway station after months-long investigation that began with only his first name, Sanjay (name changed), and no photograph, contact number, or address.The govt railway police (GRP) personnel in Madhya Pradesh found the teenage girl and sent her for a medical examination. The results showed that the girl was pregnant. A rape case under Pocso Act was registered with GRP on Aug 3, and the case was transferred to Mumbai. It was investigating officer sub-inspector Dnyaneshwar Shendge who, while making a routine inquiry about the suspect, found the first lead. A man showed Shendge an Instagram account of Sanjay on his phone. The account had a photo. “The account was not operational since April. Meta sent a mobile number linked to the account, but it was switched off,” said police. Police noticed a number that had liked a couple of posts of the suspect on Instagram. A police team comprising Shendge and his colleagues, Ramesh Tonde and Kiran Shelar, contacted this number posing as the suspect’s friend, Faheem. “The number belonged to the suspect’s brother, Abhay (name changed). Abhay told us that two to three months ago, he had received a call from Sanjay from a Goa number,” said police, but they did not receive any response upon calling. Police found another number that was used at Mumbai Central and in Goa as well. A Bengali-speaking woman answered the call who told police that a young man had taken her phone to make a call. The youth had told the couple that he was looking for a job, and they told him to accompany them to Goa, where he could find work. The accused started working at a restaurant in Goa. The couple told police that Sanjay used to talk to a waiter called Chandu. In Dec, police zeroed in on the location and reached Goa. A policeman called up Chandu pretending to be Sanjay’s friend. Chandu said Sanjay was resting in their room. Chandu then sent his restaurant’s location to the police. Cops disguised as daily wage labourers reached the restaurant. The accused was arrested shortly after that.
