COIMBATORE: The Coimbatore district mahila court on Saturday found three accused in the gang rape of a college student guilty and sentenced them to life imprisonment. The convicts are identified as T Karuppusamy alias Satheesh, 30, of Singampunari in Sivaganga district, his brother T Kaleeswaran alias Karthik, 21, and their relative M Guna alias Thavasi, 20, of Madurai district. The trial was completed within two months of filing a 350-page chargesheet and 126 days after the college woman was gang raped by the trio at an isolated place near the city airport after assaulting her boyfriend. According to an official source, the chargesheet was filed on Jan 8, 2026. The prosecution began examining witnesses on Feb 2 and it was concluded on Feb 23. A total of 72 witnesses, including the two victims, their family members, friends, police officers, CCTV experts and DNA experts, were examined. The court marked 111 govt exhibits. Special public prosecutor B Jisha submitted arguments on Feb 24 and sought maximum punishment for the accused. The defence arguments were heard on Feb 27. The crime was committed on the intervening night of Nov 2 and 3, 2025, when the trio took the college girl, who was talking to her boyfriend in a stationary car near the city airport, to a motor room at the Govt Polytechnic College after assaulting the friend and gang raped her. The Peelamedu police arrested the trio on Nov 3 after shooting them in the legs. They were booked under sections 324(4) (mischief causing loss or damage to property), 127(2) (wrongful confinement), 309(4) (attempted robbery), 311 (causing grievous hurt), 70(1) (gang rape), 74 (assault with intent to outrage a woman’s modesty), 76 (assault with intent to strip a woman naked), and 111(2) (organised crime ) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. District mahila court judge (in charge) V Sundararaj found the three guilty under seven of the eight sections. According to a source, the rape survivor and her boyfriend had been in a relationship for more than five years. “On the day of the incident, the boyfriend took her to the spot for a nature’s call. The accused, who were consuming alcohol there, saw them and attacked them. The incident reportedly occurred within five minutes of the couple entering the area. The survivor and her boyfriend are recovering and planning to get married soon.”Timeline Nov 2
- Rape survivor and her boyfriend arrived at the crime spot: 10.45 pm
- Accused intercepted the victims: 10.50 pm
- Boyfriend made a 100 call: 11.20
Nov 3
- The victim rescued at: 4 am
- The accused shot at legs and arrested on 10.45 pm.
Legal proceedings
- Preliminary chargesheet filed on: Dec 1, 2025.
- Additional chargesheet filed on: Jan 8, 2026.
- Witness examination commenced: Feb 2, 2026.
- Witness examination concluded: Feb 23, 2026.
- Prosecution presented arguments on: Feb 24, 2026.
- Defence presented arguments on: Feb 27, 2026.
- The verdict pronounced on: March 7, 2026.
