Seven people, including three minors, allegedly raped an 18-year-old woman in a village in Madhya Pradesh’s Betul district while she was on her way back home with her brother, the police told PTI on Thursday. Five of the accused have been arrested so far.

The woman and her brother were returning home to their village in Padhar area when the accused, riding on motorcycles, accosted them. The two were forcefully taken to the Pisajodi forest area where the crime took place on the intervening night of April 29 and April 30. The accused threw the woman’s brother in a well after assaulting him and then raped her.

“The youth managed to come out of the well and informed the family members, who then rushed to the spot,” Superintendent of Police Bhadoria told The Week. “The accused who were trying to take the girl away then fled the spot. Our team arrested five of them later in the night.”

The woman’s family has filed a police complaint. Four of the seven accused have been identified as Shubham Bele, Lokesh Soni, both 22-year-old, Sandeep Khatiya (23), Pawan Bele (24). Bele, Khatiya and the three minors have been taken into custody. The case has been registered under sections 376 (rape), 307 (attempt to murder) and 365 (kidnapping).

This incident comes a week after a seven-year-old girl was raped in Damoh district on April 22. The accused had attempted to damage the eyes of the girl. The incident, which occurred amid a nationwide lockdown due to the coronavirus outbreak, had triggered widespread an outrage in Madhya Pradesh.