In a shocking incident, a 23-year-old woman was assaulted by an auto driver who is also working as a Tollywood junior artiste. The girl was walking near a park at Narayanguda on February 3 morning.

The suspect, Varthiya Raju, saw the woman walking alone. He stopped his vehicle in front of her, and then caught her. When the woman started to shout, the suspect ran in his auto. Police have traced the auto with the help of CCTV footage. They have arrested him on Tuesday.

"The incident occurred at around 6.30 am.  I was on my morning walk and had reached near Melkote Park at Vithalwadi. An autorickshaw came from behind and stopped in front of me. A man stepped out, rushed towards me and started grabbing my body,” said the victim, who is also a student, in her complaint.

The suspect Raju has acted in small roles as villains’ sidekicks in a few Tollywood movies. Police suspect that the auto driver was drunk.

“We booked a case against the suspect. We checked footage from 30 CCTV cameras to trace the autorickshaw. Our team identified the vehicle and arrested the suspect,” said Narayanguda Inspector S. Bheem Reddy. Police said the 25 -year-old Raju belongs to Namappally mandal in Nalgonda district. He is married and has a child.

“He does small roles in movies and works as an auto driver hiring vehicles from his friends. We are investigating if he was involved in any other sexual offenses,” said an officer. Raju was booked for outraging a woman’s modesty and wrongful restraint.

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BY M. DIVYA SRI