Foreigner was raped in front of husband in Datia jungle:Purse clue helps police track gang, DNA confirms crime; court sends 6 to life term

In Part 1 of Crime Files, you read that a foreign couple Johnson and Emma, who set out to tour India by bicycle, set up their camp by the highway in a village in Datia. Around 8 pm, 6-7 people attacked them. The criminals came with sticks and clubs, one of them also had a gun. They beat up Johnson and gang-raped his wife Emma. The foreign couple kept screaming for help, but there was no one in the jungle to hear their cries and help them. After committing the crime, the criminals looted their belongings and disappeared into the darkness of the jungle. The victimized foreign couple came to the highway for help. Devendra and his companions, who were passing by on the road, took them to Datia Civil Line police station. After this, the police registered an FIR and started the investigation. Now the police faced a big challenge to catch the criminals who committed the crime, but there were no clues. There was no CCTV camera there and the foreign tourists couldn’t identify them. Johnson could only tell that those 6-7 people were talking in Hindi. Where did the accused disappear after committing the crime? How did the police reach the criminals? Which evidence proved crucial in the case… and did the foreign couple get justice or not… read in this report… On the night of March 15, 2013, the robbery and gang rape incident with the foreign couple made headlines across the country. The police were also shocked by this incident with tourists. Questions began to arise about tourist safety. As the case was big and serious, the police also showed promptness in taking action in the matter. The FIR was registered within two-three hours of the incident. Statements from Johnson and Emma were also taken. Station Inspector RK Singh, without wasting time, went out with Emma and Johnson at night to inspect the crime scene. No eyewitnesses found
Upon reaching the crime scene, they saw that the tent and belongings were scattered. Both their bicycles were also lying there. The criminals had stolen some items, but due to darkness, no evidence could be found that would lead to the criminals. The next day, Emma was sent to Gwalior for medical examination. On the other hand, police along with Devendra and Deepak, who had brought both of them to the police station, reached Jhariya village to inspect the crime scene again. Police were also questioning people from around the village, but no leads were found from anyone. Police asked Suresh from the village, “Did you see 5-6 people coming or going together last night, who had sticks in their hands?” Suresh clearly denied. Police questioned some other people about this. Apart from the foreign couple, there were no eyewitnesses to the incident and no one had seen the criminals. Entire case depended on evidence
Now only evidence could lead police to the criminals. Therefore, they reached the crime scene again and started investigating thoroughly. A policeman said – Sir look, we found a purse. TI RK Singh said – Hey look at the purse carefully, we might get some clue from it. Policeman – Sir there are someone’s voter ID cards in it. TI- Well done! This ID can now lead us to the criminals. Purse found in jungle reveals many secrets
The cards found in the purse belonged to persons named Nitin and Vishnu. This is where police got their first evidence against the suspects. Based on the addresses, police immediately raided their homes. Two days after the incident, on March 17, Nitin and Vishnu Kanjar were arrested. Nitin and Vishnu could not explain how the cards reached there and they had not filed any complaint about losing them. Upon strict interrogation, five more names came forward. These included Ramkanjar, Rishi Baba Kanjar, Bhuta Ghanshyam and Brijesh. All of them were between 20 to 22 years of age. Police arrested them two days after the incident on March 17. Chargesheet filed after completing investigation in 10 days
Police filed charges of robbery and gang rape against 6 accused. A gun was also recovered from accused Ram Kanjar, so a case under Arms Act was also registered against him. On the other hand, the accused were claiming themselves innocent, so police also started gathering scientific evidence against the accused. Based on these evidences, police filed the chargesheet against all the accused. Police acted swiftly in the entire matter. They arrested the unknown criminals within two days of the incident without any clue or identification. Police completed the investigation within 10 days and filed the chargesheet in court. The court also started hearing the case quickly. Emma narrated her ordeal in court
Emma told the court – My hands were tied behind my back, I had become completely helpless. She said that I was screaming loudly, crying, but no one came to help in the jungle. To stop her crying, one of the accused grabbed her throat tightly. During the scuffle, her glasses fell off, which made her even more helpless. Emma said that she offered to pay money again for her release, but no one listened to her. After this, two or three people surrounded her and removed her pants and underwear. Then 5 to 7 people took turns raping her. While some people were raping her, the others were holding Johnson and they kept switching places among themselves. This entire incident was not just physically but also mentally devastating for her. Johnson described the helplessness of that night
Johnson told the court that even after giving money, the accused attacked. They beat with sticks, punched and tried to strangle. Three-four people were standing around him. Johnson said that at the same time, the others tied Emma’s hands and made her lie on the ground. He was tied facing the other direction and it was dark, so he couldn’t clearly see who was raping Emma, but he clearly heard that Emma was crying, screaming and saying that people were raping her. After the rape, the accused started searching their travel bags. After taking some items, they cut Emma’s rope and disappeared into the jungle. Later when both checked, they found that laptop, battery, two pairs of earphones, mobile phone, head lamp and some Indian currency had been stolen. Court delivered justice within four months
Johnson and Emma identified all 6 accused. Fingerprints of accused Ramkanjar, Bhuta and Nitin were found on items stolen from Johnson that were recovered from the accused. Hair samples, smear slides, and DNA samples were taken from the accused. DNA reports found sperm from accused Ramkanjar, Vishnu, Bhuta, Brijesh and Nitin on Emma’s body. This proved to be the biggest evidence of gang rape. The court heard the case and delivered the verdict within four months of the incident. On July 20, 2013, the Special Court of Datia found all 6 accused guilty of robbery and gang rape and sentenced them to life imprisonment.