Indian man arrested for raping minor in Thailand

An Indian man has been arrested in Thailand for allegedly raping a 14-year-old girl last month after meeting her in an online platform, according to a media report.

Bennur Yatheesha, 28, was arrested at his condo room in Klong Toei district under an arrest warrant issued yesterday, The Nation reported.

He denied raping the girl and said he simply took her to his room for drinks, it said.

The girl told her parents that she had met the suspect via the Line chat app on June 30 and he asked her to meet him on Khaosan Road on July 1, it said.

She alleged that the suspect took her to his condo room and made her drink beer before raping her.

The girl said she was initially scared to inform her family so she rented a hotel in the Sukhumvit area until July 3 before she went home and told her father, who filed a complaint with police later, the report said.

Yatheesha was charged with raping a girl under 15 and unlawfully taking away a person under 15 from her parents.