Mumbai: The special POCSO court has sentenced a 37-year-old man from Chembur to 20 years imprisonment for repeatedly sexually assaulting a minor boy since 2016, when the boy was in 8th standard and used to go to the house of the accused to play games, till 2020, when the boy had turned 17.

The special court had also imposed a fine of Rs 25,000 on the accused, out of which Rs 20,000 has to go to the victim boy as compensation. Besides, the court has recommended for further compensation to District Legal Services Authority.

As per the case registered with the RCF police on complaint of mother of the victim, on October 4, 2020, accused messaged the 17-year-old victim boy, saying, 'Noone is at home will you come home?' The message was seen by victim’s mother. She found that the accused had been frequently calling him and messaging him, asking him to go to his house.

The mother thereafter asked the boy as to why was the accused calling him to his house. The family however, knew the accused as he used to stay at the house opposite to theirs but recently, before lodging of the complaint, he had shifted to a house in a nearby building.

When confronted, the boy revealed his ordeal he suffered over the period of four years since he was in 8th standard in 2016. The boy said that in July 2016, the accused called the boy to his house to play games. When the boy went there, the accused showed him porn videos and subjected him to unnatural sex.

When the victim was crying, accused asked him that his parents will beat him and will drive him out. Accused threatened the victim boy ‘not to inform about the incident to anybody. The boy said that after some days, accused shifted his house in a nearby building and was calling the victim at his house.

In February, 2020, when victim returning from his college, accused took him at his house, shown him porn videos and committed anal sex with him and also threatened him that ‘if he informed about it to anybody, he will not spare him and his family members'. The accused has done anal sex with the victim boy for four to five times and also threatened him.

After hearing this the parents of the boy, confronted the accused. The accused threatened the family and dared to do anything they wish to. The family hence lodged the complaint on October 5, 2020.

The public prosecutor Veena Shelar examined nine witnesses including, victim, his mother, medical officers and investigation officers. The court accepted the prosecution case and held the accused guilty of sexual assaulting the boy.

The court while refusing to show leniency observed that, "The accused is 37-years-old and was having sufficient maturity at the time of incident. Despite of that, he has involved in such type of offence with the minor victim boy, while he was 13-year-old. The incident will left scar in the mind of victim for longer period and he may not be in a position to live normal life. He will be remained under stress and pressure."