Woman tourist raped in Goa resort; man hailing from Gujarat held

Panaji, Aug 25 (PTI) The Goa police have arrested a man hailing from Gujarat for allegedly raping a woman tourist at a resort in Assonora village of North Goa, an official said on Friday.

The incident took place on August 23, and based on the victim’s complaint, the police arrested the 47-year-old accused, identified as Laxman Shiyar, who was also on a visit to Goa as a tourist, he said.

“The victim and the accused had earlier met each other on a flight and befriended each other. During their conversation, the man had taken down the woman’s phone number and later remained in touch with her over the phone,” Deputy Superintendent of Police Jivba Dalvi said.

“Earlier this week, the victim and the man visited Goa separately. On August 23, he called the woman on her phone and persuaded her to visit the resort he was staying at Assonora under the pretext of showing the amenities there,” he said, quoting the complaint.

When the woman visited the resort alone, the accused took her into his room and raped her there. He also threatened her against disclosing about the incident to anybody, Dalvi said.

Based on the woman’s complaint, police teams were formed and the accused was arrested at Thivim village near Mapusa town in North Goa, he said.

The police did not specify the victim’s age.

Assonora village is located around 40 km from Panaji.