Man on bike chases, sexually harasses woman in Panaji

PANAJI: A young woman was left traumatised after a motorcycle-borne man chased and harassed her in the state capital on Sunday night. The incident took place at 10.20pm near Patto when the woman and her friend were riding back home. She told the police that the accused began chasing them from the Church Square. North Goa superintendent of police, Akshat Kaushal, said the police subsequently identified the suspect and traced him on Monday morning, when he was out with his girlfriend, “but he pushed the police and fled the spot”.
In a social media post, the woman said, “While my friend and I were on a bike, a man approached us with an ‘excuse me’, pretending to be polite. But as we looked closer, we saw him riding with one hand while using the other to masturbate. He had the audacity to say, ‘nice a**’. Disgusted and creeped out, we sped away. And like always, we were left thinking, should we have yelled? Confronted him? Reported him? But the truth is, in moments like these, fear takes over,” she said in her post.
Panaji police recorded the survivor’s statement and registered a first information report (FIR) against an unidentified person. After the FIR was registered, the police examined CCTV footage and managed to zero in on the suspect. “Based on CCTV footage, and after working closely with the survivor, we were able to identify the suspect. He is a resident of Tonca, Caranzalem, and has a previous criminal history of sexual harassment and cases under the Pocso Act too. He is presently out on bail in a 2024 case,” Kaushal said.
“It’s natural for women to feel scared when faced with predators like this. What gives these men the confidence to do something so vile? What kind of thrill do they get from this? When will they be the ones who are scared? When will they hesitate before harassing someone? But of course, the easiest solution to this is to ask us girls to ‘stay home’ and ‘stay safe,’ isn’t it?” the woman’s post further read.
Similar incidents have been reported in the past in Panaji, where unidentified persons have chased women.