Delhi Man Arrested For Allegedly Raping Girls Aged 7 And 10 On Rooftops

NEW DELHI: A 30-year-old man was arrested for allegedly sexually abusing minor girls after offering them goodies, a senior police officer said Wednesday.

Manish Chaddha, a resident of Shakarpur, was arrested on the intervening night of Tuesday and Wednesday, he said.

Police had been tracing the accused since December following a case in Madhu Vihar where he allegedly raped a 10-year-old girl after offering her biscuits.

The incident took place two days ago when the girl was playing outside her house.

Chaddha lured the girl with toffees and took her to the rooftop of a house and raped her, the officer said.

Since then police had been scanning through around 600 CCTV cameras to identify the accused, he said.

The accused used to threaten the girls of dire consequences if they reported the matter to anyone, the officer said, adding that he was addicted to liquor, online gambling and child-pornography.

During interrogation, the accused confessed about his involvement in other three similar cases of sexual assault with girls in east Delhi area of Pandav Nagar, Kalyanpuri and Ghazipur, he added.

In mid-January, a seven-year-old girl was raped on her neighbour's terrace in Ghazipur, the senior police officer said.

Police found a common link in these cases following which the entire team of east district was put on high alert.

A case was registered under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act and an investigation was taken up, the officer said.

Police are also probing if he had sexually abused other minors apart from the four cases reported, he said.

Chaddha, a class 12 dropout, tried for petty jobs. But due to his addiction to liquor and drugs, he ended up quitting them within days of joining those jobs, the officer added.