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Three sickos sentenced to death for gang-raping two women and murdering man

WARNING: DISTRESSING CONTENT Three men who gang-raped an Israeli tourist and her host and pushed three male tourists into a canal have been sentenced to death for the sexual assaults and murder

[The attackers pushed three men into the Tungabhadra River canal before raping the two women]

The attackers pushed three men into the Tungabhadra River canal before raping the two women(Image: AP)

Three brutes have been sentenced to death for gang-raping two women and killing a man near a popular Unesco World Heritage site in southern India.

The two women an Israeli tourist, 27, and a 29-year-old Indian homestay operator were stargazing with three male tourists near a lake in the city of Hampi when they were attacked by a group of men last March. Police said three men on a motorbike approached them and asked for money.

After an argument, the men pushed the male travellers into a nearby canal before raping the women. Two of the men survived but the third man's body was tragically recovered days later.

[The victims were stargazing near a lake in the city of Hampi, Karnataka]

The victims were stargazing near a lake in the city of Hampi, Karnataka(Image: AP)

The three men Mallesh alias Handi Malla, 22, Sai alias Chaitanya Sai, 21, and Sharanappa alias Sharanabasavaraj, 27 were convicted earlier this month for gang-rape, attempted murder, robbery and other offences.

On Monday, the district court in Koppal branded the case as the "rarest of rare" due to the brutality involved and stressed that crimes of such brutality merited the harshest punishment in order to uphold the rule of law and safeguard public safety.

Public Prosecutor Nagalakshmi said: "With an intention to rape these women, the convicts pushed the three men into the canal. To ensure that they did not come out, they threw stones on them. Later, they gang raped the homestay owner and the Israeli national."

[Violence against women has sparked national outrage and protests]

Violence against women has sparked national outrage and protests(Image: Hindustan Times via Getty Images)

She said one of the men did not know how to swim but the other survivor and American tourist saved his life. After the assault, the attackers were said to have fled the scene with mobile phones, cash and a camera they stole from the victims.

Ms Nagalakshmi said: "It was a case of gang rape, murder, attempt to murder, robbery and extortion.

"Hence the Judge Sadananda Nagappa Naik under section 103 of the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita gave them capital punishment. For the gang rape, the court ordered imprisonment till their last breath."

[Protests over a lack of safety for women have been held in India]

Protests over a lack of safety for women have been held in India(Image: AFP via Getty Images)

Attacks on women in India gained international attention in 2024 after the brutal rape-homicide of a junior doctor at a hospital in the eastern city of Kolkata. The attack sparked national outrage and protests over a lack of safety for women.

And high-profile cases involving foreign visitors have also sparked outrage in recent years. A Spanish tourist said in 2024 his wife had been raped in northern India, while an Indian-American woman said she had been raped at a hotel in Delhi. A British tourist was raped in front of her partner in Goa in 2022.

Sexual assaults on women have become a prominent issue in India, where police recorded 31,516 rape cases in 2022, a 20% increase from 2021, according to the National Crime Records Bureau. But the real figure is believed to be much higher given the stigma surrounding sexual violence and victims' lack of faith in police.

If you or somebody you know has been affected by this story, contact Victim Support for free, confidential advice on 08 08 16 89 111 or visit their website, http://www.victimsupport.org.uk.

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