A 28-year-old Spanish woman was allegedly gang-raped by seven men in the Dumka district of India's Jharkhand state, a well-known tourist destination.
Fernanda, who has duo Brazilian-Spanish nationality, and her partner, Vincente, are travel vloggers known online as Vuelta Al Mundo En Moto (Around The World By Motorbike).
The seven men allegedly barged into the couple's tent and assaulted them, holding Vincente with a knife while they took turns to rape Fernanda.
The couple uploaded two videos on their Instagram detailing the assault on Mar. 1.
While the stories are no longer available, the videos were later recirculated online by others.
a travelvlog couple trying to visit every country in the world decided to go to India as their latest destination.
11 hours ago they announced they were at the hospital because he had been beaten up and she had been gang raped by 7 men. pic.twitter.com/WNSd21TUi5
— pagliacci the hated 🌝 (@Slatzism) March 2, 2024
Travelling via motorcycle
Vincente and Fernanda have been travelling around the globe with their motorbikes and documenting their journey online, racking up more than 238,000 followers on Instagram along the way.
The number of followers increased in the last two days, following news of the assault making international headlines.
In their videos uploaded on Mar. 1, the couple shared that they were in India and had pitched their tent near the Hansdiha market in the Dumka, The Publica reported.
They can be seen with bruises and swelling on their faces, but Fernanda appeared to be in a worse state, with red marks across her cheek and jaw. She also had tears in her eyes.
The in-text caption read:
“Something has happened to us that we would not wish on anyone. Seven men have raped me. They have beaten us and robbed us, although not many things because what they wanted was to rape me. We are at the hospital with police. It happened tonight here in India.”
The pair said they had fallen asleep when seven young men broke into their tent.
“They beat us. They put a knife to my neck, and told me they were going to kill me,” Vincente said.
“Fernanda was raped. Seven of them. Seven men. Sons of bitches...”
The couple entered India after visiting Sri Lanka.
They reportedly travelled over 150,000km by 2023.
Reported to police
The pair reported the assault to the police and were later brought to Saraiyahat Community Health Centre for Fernanda to do a rape kit.
According to The Indian Express, four suspects have been arrested by the police.
Jharkhand's Director General of Police Ajay Kumar Singh also told the paper that a special investigation team has been set up to find the other accused.
"This is a condemnable incident and the police are taking appropriate action. The culprits will not be spared," said Mithilesh Kumar Thakur, regional minister of the state of Jhajhand, as reported by euronews.
Incident did not change their opinion on India
The couple updated their Instagram on Mar. 4, telling followers that they were "better and alive".
Screenshot via @vueltaalmundoenmoto/Instagram
They also said that despite the incident, "India is a country with good people", and not a "bad country".
"It is a country worth visiting," Vincente reiterated.
Screenshot via @vueltaalmundoenmoto/Instagram
Top photo via @vueltaalmundoenmoto/Instagram