Berhampur: A court in Berhampur on Friday sentenced an 87-year-old man to seven years of rigorous imprisonment for raping a 14-year-old girl in Ganjam district about 17 years ago.
“Special fast-track-cum-assistant sessions judge Soudamin Singh awarded the sentence to the man after recording the statement of 18 witnesses, including police and medical reports,” said Arati Patnaik, assistant public prosecutor.
The court also imposed a fine of Rs 5,000 on the convict. He would undergo an additional six months of jail if he failed to pay the fine, he said.
The convict, then 70 and a co-villager of the survivor, raped the girl after he invited her to his home on Feb 23, 2008.
A case was registered under different sections of the IPC and Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (Pocso) Act after the girl’s father lodged an FIR. Police arrested the accused on the same day. He was out on bail during the pronouncement of the judgment, sources said.