Teen COVID-19 patient raped by ambulance driver while being taken to hospital

Public outrage rattled the state of Kerala in India after a 19-year-old COVID-19 patient was raped by an ambulance driver named Noufal, on Sunday, September 6. The driver, who has a pending murder charge against him, reportedly took the woman to a secluded spot and raped her. The victim recorded his apology before she was dropped at the hospital. This led to the man's arrest. Police are investigating how the murder suspect was hired by the ambulance service without a police clearance certificate.

After testing positive on Saturday, September 5, the unnamed victim was to be taken to a COVID First-Line Treatment Centre in Pandalam, Kerala. She and another 42-year-old woman were to be transported by the same ambulance. The other patient was to be taken to the district hospital in Kozhenchery. Instead of stopping off at Pandalam, Noufal dropped off the older woman first.

He then drove the victim to a secluded spot and raped her at around 1 am local time. He then threatened the woman and told her not to report the incident. She was then driven to Pandalam. However, before she was dropped off the 29-year-old rapist apologised to her. She recorded the exchange and handed over the recording as evidence to the police.

Once she was dropped off, she immediately informed the hospital of the rape. Police launched an investigation and arrested the suspect. It was revealed that Noufal had been charged with attempted murder in 2019 and the case is pending. GVK Emergency Management and Research Institute, which operates the government ambulance services, have been questioned about the employment of a murder suspect.

According to Indian Express, the suspect did not have a police clearance certificate which is mandatory for the ambulance drivers to submit. Noufal reportedly had submitted a written undertaking that he would obtain a clearance certificate soon. The suspect, who has a wife and a child, has been dismissed from his job. All other drivers have been asked to submit police clearance certificates.

Questions were raised as to why the women were not accompanied by a healthcare professional. A health department official pointed out that in critical cases, health workers accompany patients being transferred. Since the women were stable, only the ambulance driver was present to limit the exposure of healthcare workers.

Kerala Human Rights Commission and Kerala Women's Commission have asked the state authorities to take strict action.