NEW DELHI, India - Six men accused of raping a Swiss tourist who was cycling with her husband in central India have appeared in court. The
men appeared in a magistrates court in Madhya Pradesh state with their
faces covered with black cloth, police superintendent Chandra Shekhar
Solanki said.
It was not clear how they pleaded.
- During their arrest on Sunday they confessed to the crime, according to police. The men face additional charges of robbing the Swiss couple.
- The attack occurred on Friday night as the couple camped in a forest in Datia district. The couple told police that the woman had been raped by seven or eight men, but that it was dark and they could not be sure of the exact number.
- The men beat up the husband and tied him to a tree before raping the woman, police said. They stole the couple's mobile phone, laptop computer and 10,000 rupees (about £120). Police said they recovered the laptop and phone from one of the suspects.
- The tourists were on a three-month holiday in India and had visited the temple town of Orchha. They were planning to cycle to Agra, about 130 miles away, to visit the Taj Mahal.
They set out from Orchha on Friday
and had pitched their tent in the forest near Jatia village when they
were attacked, police said.
The Press Trust of India news agency
reported that the 39-year-old woman said she would stay in India for now
to help the investigation. India's tourism minister, K Chiranjeevi (photo), met
the Swiss ambassador to assure him that the victim would receive
justice, a statement from his office said.
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