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'Distressed' Kenyan lied about assault, withdraws complaint

The Nigerian Citizen Welfare Association has apologised for the incident

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Maria Burendi, the Kenyan national who was allegedly thrashed in Greater Noida by a group of men on Wednesday, withdrew her police complaint on Thursday after several glaring loopholes in her story came to the fore. Maria's friends have said she was deeply upset due to some personal issues and was not in the right state of mind. The Nigerian Citizen Welfare Association has apologised for the incident.

Maria had claimed that five unidentified men pulled her out of a cab and thrashed her while she was on her way to a friend's apartment in Greater Noida. The Uttar Pradesh Police, however, stated that all the electronic evidence proves that she lied about the assault.

"During interrogation, the Ola cab driver revealed that he dropped her safely at the location in the Omicron Society of Greater Noida. Probe of the car's GPS movement and the cab's payment slip showed that the vehicle did not stop any where stop during the journey," Dharmendra Singh, Senior Superintendent of Police, Gautam Budh Nagar, said.

He further said: "The statements of the woman and the driver also contradicted each other. According to the woman, she was attacked outside the Omicron Society but according to the driver, a PCR van was stationed outside the society gate."

Talking about the incident, Superintendent of Police (rural) Sujata Singh said,"Maria booked a cab at 5.50 am on Wednesday, to go from Delhi Police Society in Greater Noida to the Omicron Society. According to the GPS movement of the cab, the trip was completed at 6.20 am and the driver was paid at 6.30 am," Sujata Singh, Superintendent of Police (rural), said.

Ola cab driver Pintu said, "I dropped her at the destination, where a man picked her up. They both went inside a house in the Omicron Society. The cab did not halt anywhere. I even waited near the society for the next 20 minutes for another pick-up call. I did not see anything happening. The woman was drinking inside the car."

Meanwhile, the Nigerian Citizen Welfare Association representatives apologised for the fabricated tale. The matter had gained attention due to the recent attacks on Africans in the area. "We joined the police to investigate the matter. Later in the evening, we found that the woman was under distress. She had cooked up the entire story. We would like to offer our apology," Charles Kennedy, Vice-President of the Nigerian Citizen Welfare Association said.

The police have decided to not press any charges against the woman in an attempt to discharge the tensions building up between Africans and Indians. "We are satisfied with the police investigation and the cops have assured us that they will not press any charges against the woman. Earlier, the police had assured our nationals of safety," Kenyan embassy representative Frederick said.

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