Brit tourist ‘raped during beach massage while on holiday with her partner’ as cops arrest ex-school librarian

A BRITISH tourist has allegedly been raped while on holiday with her partner in the popular Indian holiday destination of Goa.

Her suspected attacker is said to have offered the woman a massage before he assaulted her.

The rape took place near Arambol Beach in Goa, Southern India, an area popular with foreign tourists, police said on Tuesday.

A local 32-year-old man was arrested on Monday over the attack.

He was reportedly part of a group offering illegal massage services near the beach.

According to a police complaint lodged by the unnamed middle-aged British woman, the accused allegedly raped her under the pretext of giving her a massage while she was lying close to Sweet Water Lake near Arambol Beach.

The alleged incident took place on June 2, but the woman lodged a complaint on Monday at the Pernem police station, after consulting relatives in the UK and seeking assistance from the British Embassy in India.

A man was reportedly arrested within an hour of the complaint to police, according to Inspector Vikram Naik.

The accused also worked as a school librarian in the past, a senior official said.

“We have contacted the police station concerned to get his past records. Currently, he is not working as a librarian,” the official said.

The accused and the survivor were sent for a medical examination at a district hospital in Mapusa near Panaji on Monday.

He is set to appear before a local court next Monday to seek his custody.

A spokesperson for the Foreign & Commonwealth Office told The Sun Online: “We are providing consular support to a British National in Goa.”

Brits made up the second-biggest group of international tourists to Goa in 2018 – the last year of available statistics – with around 295,000 visitors.

Visitors are drawn to the region’s tropical beaches, relaxed atmosphere, and unique cuisine and culture – a result of Goa’s status as a former Portuguese colony.