Video Producer: Vishnu Gopinath
Video Editor: Puneet Bhatia
Trigger Warning: Rape, Descriptors of Sexual Assault
An Indian-origin student was arrested in the United Kingdom’s Cardiff, on Saturday, 17 June, for allegedly raping a semi-conscious woman last year. He has reportedly been sentenced to six years and nine months in a young offenders’ institution.
The local police said that CCTV footage showed a man, identified as 20-year-old Preet Vikal, carrying an “intoxicated” woman to his flat in Cardiff in June last year.
The Indian-origin man and the woman were out with their individual groups of friends when they met each other and moved away from their groups, officials said.
News broadcaster BBC reported on 17 June that Vikal admitted to raping the woman and was sentenced to six years and nine months in a young offenders’ institution by a court.
According to a report by NDTV, the woman told police officials that she was "left shaken, unable to sleep, and feeling guilt" as a result of Vikal’s actions.
The Arrest
The police said that they undertook an extensive trawl of security camera footage, which, along with an Instagram message exchange with the survivor, helped them identify and nab Vikal.
They said that the woman bravely provided an account of the incident and added that their enquiry revealed inconsistencies in Vikal’s version of events.
"From the minute this was reported, we were absolutely 100 percent committed to identifying the person responsible and bringing him to justice," the police said.
"It was this, along with the continued bravery of the victim, that ultimately led to him pleading guilty," they said.
CCTV footage released by the police revealed that Preet Vikal carried the victim in his arms and then proceeded to carry her across his shoulders.
According to the police's statement, this encounter occurred when Vikal came across the woman while she was out with her friends in Cardiff city centre. Shockingly, he continued to transport her to a location in the North Road area, where she was later raped.
“Stranger attacks such as these are extremely unusual in Cardiff but in Preet Vikal, we had a dangerous individual. He took advantage of an intoxicated and vulnerable young woman who became separated from her friends,” South Wales police said.
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