Five, including siblings, get life term under POCSO Act in Salem

Five youth, including two brothers, were sentenced to life on the charges of blackmailing and sexually assaulting a 14-year-old girl in Salem district.

According to the police, K. Vinith, alias Asari (26), of Thekkampati enticed the girl of Class IX by claiming that he had fallen in love with her. On April 25, 2023, he allegedly convinced the girl to elope with him and took her to the house of a relative, where he sexually abused her and recorded that on his mobile phone. He shared the video clip with his brother, K. Vignesh (24).

The same day, Vignesh and three of his friends blackmailed the girl, threatening to upload the video on social media websites, and sexually assaulted her. The Suramangalam All Women’s Police registered a case under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act and arrested them. The case trial was held at the Special Court for the Exclusive Trial of Cases under the POCSO Act in Salem and on Wednesday, the court found the five accused guilty and sentenced them to life in prison and also imposed a fine of ₹12,000 on them.