A court in Karnataka on Monday sentenced three men to death for the gang rape of an Israeli tourist and a homestay owner and the murder of a male tourist near Hampi last year.
The First Additional District and Sessions Court in Gangavathi awarded capital punishment to Mallesh alias Handimall, Sai and Sharanappa, days after convicting them in the case.
The crime occurred on the night of March 6, 2025, near Sanapur Lake, around four kilometres from the UNESCO-listed ruins of Hampi. A group comprising a 27-year-old Israeli woman, a 29-year-old homestay owner, and three male tourists from the United States, Odisha and Maharashtra had gone out stargazing after dinner.
Also read: Two arrested in Hampi gang-rape, hunt on for third
According to the complaint, three men arrived on a motorcycle, initially seeking directions to a petrol pump before demanding money. When the group refused, the assailants allegedly assaulted them and pushed the three men into the nearby Tungabhadra Canal.
While the men struggled in the water, two of the accused raped the homestay owner and another sexually assaulted the Israeli tourist. The attackers also robbed the victims of cash and mobile phones before fleeing.
Two of the male tourists swam to safety and were hospitalised. The Odisha tourist drowned and his body was recovered the following morning.
The case had sparked outrage nationwide, raising concerns over tourist safety in the heritage town. Police arrested the accused within days of the incident. Eleven months later, the court imposed the death penalty, calling it a fit case for capital punishment.
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