A 19-year-old college girl was gang-raped allegedly by four youths at Bhapur forest in Odisha's Nayagarh district, police said today.
The police have arrested all the four youths including the main accused Santosh Panigrahi (25), who happens to be the boyfriend of the victim, Commissioner of Police (CP) R K Sharma told reporters here.
The incident took place on February 13, a day before the Valentine Day, the police said when the girl was lured to a forest area in nearby Nayagarh district by her boyfriend on a bike where three of Panigrahi's friend also joined him.
The accused, were identified as Santosh Panigrahi (25) alias Mitu, Daka Jena (25) alias Bapi, Bhaskar Sahoo (26) alias Lipu and Sadananda Bharatiya (22) alias Sonu - all from Kurala village in Nayagarh district.
Both the victim and accused were sent for medical examination.
Inspector-in-charge (IIC) of Mahila police station Sarojini Nayak said Santosh Panigrahi who is pursuing his MCA degree in a private engineering college and staying at Bhimtangi area under Lingaraj Police limits had developed a affair with the girl barely 20 days ago.
The relationship between them began through online chat, she said. The victim hails from Bihar and was pursuing her Class 12th studies in a well-known local college here.
Sharma said the four allegedly gang-raped the girl and dropped her in evening at Jayadev Vihar where the victim stays.
They also threatened her of dire consequences if she dared to inform the police, the IIC said.
