Moodbidri: A man was taken into custody on Wednesday November 5 for raping a 19-year-old girl repeatedly over the span of four months.

The accused has been identified as 45-year-old Dayananda Hegde,  a resident of Navodaya Nivasa in Munneru.

It is learnt that in July 2014, when the girl was washing clothes near a pond Dayananda molested and raped her. He further threatened her to kill her if she screamed or disclosed the matter to anyone.

Dayananda continued to molest and rape the girl for a period of 4 months. On October 31, he once again pulled her  into the forest, when she was going to a beedi branch and again raped her.

Villagers who had gone to forest to fetch firewood witnessed the incident and informed her family members. The girl then lodged a complaint against the accused in the Moodbidri police station.

Circle inspector Anantha Padmanabha registered the case and further investigations are on.