Pune Police on Sunday revealed that a rape complaint filed by a 22-year-old IT professional against a man she claimed posed as a delivery agent was entirely fabricated. The woman, who initially alleged that she was sexually assaulted at her home, is now under investigation for misleading authorities.
Calling it a “false complaint”, Pune Police Commissioner Amitesh Kumar stated that the woman’s allegations were baseless and intended to malign the city’s reputation. “It was found that the woman had filed a false complaint. Her complaint misled the Pune Police,” Kumar said. “An attempt was made to create a narrative that Pune is unsafe for women, but we resolved the case within 24 hours,” he added.
In her original complaint, the woman claimed a stranger, disguised as a courier delivery man, forcibly entered her apartment, bolted the door, sprayed a chemical on her and sexually assaulted her. She also alleged that the man took a selfie using her phone and left a threatening message warning her not to report the assault.
However, investigations quickly revealed that the accused was neither a stranger nor a delivery agent. He turned out to be an old acquaintance and fellow IT professional. According to police, there was no forced entry, no use of any chemical spray and no assault. In fact, the woman reportedly took the photo herself and composed the threatening message.
“By deploying the full resources of the police administration, we solved the case quickly,” Kumar said, adding that no one should attempt to “defame Pune, a city known to be one of the safest, through fake narratives”.
According to reports, the woman told police during investigation that she suffers from an unstable mental condition, which led her to concoct the story. The man who was briefly detained has since been released. Authorities have issued him a notice asking him to cooperate with the investigation and remain available for questioning as needed.