Monson Mawankal. File photo: Special arrangement
Monson Mavunkal, an alleged antiquities dealer, was on June 17 sentenced to life imprisonment by the Additional District Sessions Court in a case registered under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offenses (POCSO) Act.
The case pertains to a 2019 incident in which Mavunkal was found sexually abusing a 17-year-old girl after promising to help her with her studies and train her in cosmetology.
The court found him guilty under various sections (7,8) of the POCSO Act. He was also found guilty under various sections under the Indian Penal Code (IPC), including 370 (trafficking of minor girl); 342 (punishment for wrongful imprisonment); 354A (sexual harassment and punishment); 376 (rape); 312 (causing abortion without the consent of the woman); and 506 (criminal intimidation). The accused was booked under 13-sections of the IPC and the POCSO Act based on the charge sheet submitted by the crime branch team probing the case. Special court judge PK Soman also imposed a fine of Rs 5.25 lakh on him.
The Ernakulam North police had initially registered a case under the POCSO Act in October 2021 following a complaint lodged by a woman. She alleged that Mavunkal sexually assaulted her daughter, who was 17 at the time, on several occasions. It was alleged that the girl’s mother was promised assistance for the education of her daughter, who wanted to study after her plus two qualification.
It is alleged that the accused misbehaved with her at different places. The complainant said that she was afraid to complain earlier because Mavankal was seen working with the authorities.
Mavunkal was arrested in September 2021 after six people complained that he had duped them of ₹10 crore. The accused produced fake bank statements to make the complainants believe that he had huge wealth, with returns from the sale of diamonds and antiques abroad stuck in his bank account. The accused collected money from the complainants to release the funds stuck in his bank due to Foreign Exchange and Management Act regulations. According to the police, the accused had offered interest-free loans to the complainants in exchange for becoming directors in some of his companies and extorting money from them.