A teenage girl was abducted and gang-raped before being sexually assaulted again by a driver who offered her a lift after she escaped. The 15-year-old victim was taken by three men on Sunday (July 20) before allegedly being driven away and raped.

Local police said she was taken in south Odisha’s Malkangiri, India, and driven up to 15km away. She was then allegedly tortured and raped before she managed to flee. However, her ordeal was far from over as a truck driver then picked her up and reportedly raped her as well.

As reported by the Daily Mail, the girl was eventually rescued by local people and she reported what had happened to the police. She had been at a birthday party when she was initially abducted and her parents lodged a missing persons report.

It has since been confirmed that four people have been arrested. They include Manoj Harijan, Rohit Kumar Hial, Bira Bhartia, and the driver, Sobham Singh, who is reportedly 26-years-old.

Malkangiri Superintendent of Police Vinodh Patil said: “All four persons involved in the crime have been arrested.” Meanwhile, Naveen Patnaik, former chief minister, has warned about the surge in violence against women in the area.

He said: “A disturbing wave of crimes against women is gripping Odisha. This surge in sexual assaults reflects a troubling erosion of law enforcement.

“When the various ranks of the police face interference and political pressure, accountability weakens – and women and girls pay the price first.”

The area has recently been added to the places where American employees must seek approval before travelling to. Some northeastern states, including Arunachal Pradesh, Sikkim, Nagaland, and parts of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands require permits to enter.

US government employees also need authorisation to travel to areas in Bihar, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, West Bengal, and Meghalaya. 

Mr Patnaik added: “Without urgent and decisive police action and political will backing it, this problem will only grow.”