Bengaluru, 9 Oct

Six boys have been apprehended after a video surfaced online showing them stripping and assaulting another minor while forcing him to consume a narcotic substance, police said on Thursday.

The incident came to light when Govindarajanagar police’s social media monitoring unit found the video online on 4 October. The Station House Officer, after verifying it, registered a case. Police traced the victim on 5 October.

“On inquiry, he revealed that five to six months ago, a few boys had locked him in a room, forced him to smoke a cigarette laced with a banned drug, and assaulted him when he refused,” a senior officer said.

The police traced and questioned six juveniles, one of whom confessed that the incident occurred on the terrace of his house. All were produced before the Juvenile Justice Board and sent to the Government Observation Home in Madiwala.

Police urged parents to stay alert and report such behaviour to help prevent drug abuse and crime among minors.