Four men sodomise 15-year-old boy in Kurnool

Kurnool: In a shocking incident, four men sodomized a 15-year-old boy at Owk Town in Kurnool district of Andhra Pradesh. Though the incident took place on 21 January, it came to light on Thursday only after the victim approached the Owk Town police station.

Sub-inspector of police K. Srikanth Reddy said the boy approached the police after a video of the horrific incident went viral on WhatsApp. The police said the accused persons have been identified as Puleti Raja, M. Prem Kumar, and two others all aged in between 20 and 22 years. All accused are residents of Owk Town, are unemployed, and addicted to liquor, police said.

The victim is a school dropout who did petty jobs in the town. He knew the four accused. On 21 January they invited him to their house in the pretext of a party. The four then got drunk, beat the boy, and sodomised him. One of the accused made a video of the heinous crime.

"We have seen the video. The boy was crying while the four were sexually assaulting him," a police officer said. The victim remained silent and did not report the incident because the four men had threatened him with dire consequences. A few days ago the accused leaked the video which went viral on WhatsApp.

"We have registered a case against the four under Section 377 of the IPC (unnatural sex) and relevant sections of Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, 2012. We have launched a manhunt," the police said.