Surat: A 42-year-old woman has accused a distant cousin of raping her in a hotel in the Amroli police station limits. Police said the accused lured the woman to a hotel on the pretext of helping resolve issues in his marriage, claiming his wife had stopped talking to him.Once inside the hotel room, he allegedly raped her, took nude photographs and threatened to circulate them if she did not comply with his demands. Amroli police have booked him for rape and criminal intimidation and begun an investigation. The victim first met the accused at his home in a village in Amreli district in April 2023. After falling into debt, he moved to Surat with his family in 2024. From there, he contacted the victim again, repeating his claim that his marital problems were due to financial distress and asking her to intervene. He called her to a complex in the Singapor area, telling her they should speak in a hotel room to avoid neighbours overhearing any arguments. Once inside, he locked the room and raped her. He then used the photographs to repeatedly threaten and coerce her. When she resisted his demands, the accused allegedly turned up at her house and threatened to reveal everything to her family and neighbours. Out of fear, the woman accompanied him to another hotel, where he raped her again. As the harassment continued, she finally approached Amroli police and filed a complaint. Police have booked the accused under Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita Sections 64(2)(f), 64(2)(m), 115(2) and 351(2), for rape and criminal intimidation.
