Kollam: In a shocking incident, three youths nabbed in a case registered under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act escaped with handcuffs after attacking the police and leaving one officer gravely injured.
The accused were identified as Jithu alias Kuttan (24) of Charuvila House, Pulikkuzhi in Kalluvathukkal; Manu (26) and Chinnukkuttan (20), who are involved in several other cases also.
V Anoop (31), the police officer who fell into a pit after being shoved by the accused, suffered serious injuries to the vertebral column and several fractures on the hand. A native of Kallambalam in Thiruvananthapuram, Anoop has been admitted to a private hospital in Thiruvananthapuram. Attached to the Armed Reserve Camp, the officer was on duty at Parippally police station.
The incident took place at Yakshikkavu Colony at Perumbuzha around 11 pm last Sunday. The three youths were named as the accused in a case of sexually abusing a fourteen-year-old boy. A five-member police team led by Parippally Sub-Inspector Noufal reached the colony after receiving a tip-off that the three accused were hiding there.
The three youths, who were sleeping on mats on the compound of a house when the police arrived, were surrounded and Manu and Chinnukkuttan handcuffed. When the police tried to handcuff first accused Jithu, the neighbours crowded the area. Taking advantage of the situation, Jithu fled from the spot, while police officer Anoop chased them.
When his capture was certain, Jithu suddenly pushed Anoop into a nearby pit and escaped. Seeing this, Manu and Chinnukkuttan attacked the other policemen and they too escaped, even though locked together with a single handcuff.
The three accused are facing charges in over 10 cases, including trespassing and damaging a house last week. The Paravur police, which registered two more cases against the trio for attacking the police and escaping with handcuffs, have intensified the search for the absconders.
