Sydney, Australia: A 45-year-old electrician of Indian origin, Amol Vijay Dhumal, has been sentenced to five years in prison after being convicted of sexually assaulting a 75-year-old woman inside her Sydney residence in 2024. Dhumal had visited the home as part of a job to install solar panels.
A jury found him guilty of engaging in sexual activity without consent. According to a report by The Sydney Morning Herald, the guilty verdict was delivered in September, while the sentencing was finalized last week.
Dhumal was among three subcontractors assigned to install solar panels at the elderly woman’s home on the morning of April 22, 2024. After the work was completed, he asked the woman whether anyone else lived with her. Upon learning that she lived alone, he embraced her and attempted to kiss her, telling her that she reminded him of his mother. The woman asked him to leave.
Two days later, Dhumal returned to the house under the pretext of fixing a power-related issue. During this visit, he asked whether her children visited frequently and then claimed that his wife did not have sexual relations with him. He subsequently overpowered the woman and raped her in her bedroom, causing physical injuries.
In her statement to the court, the survivor said that since the assault, she felt as though she was merely existing rather than truly living. “I feel like I am imprisoned in my own home,” she said, explaining that she had withdrawn from all volunteer activities she once took part in. She described her home as a place that once provided safety and comfort but had now become a source of fear and trauma.
She further stated that she now secures all windows and doors and lives in constant anxiety, fearing that someone knows she lives alone and could return to harm her again. Describing the attacker, she referred to him as a person with a deeply disturbed and malicious mindset whose actions had caused irreversible damage to her life.
During sentencing, Dhumal arranged for his wife, Gauri, to appear in court in his support. She told the court that while she accepted the verdict, she did not wish to discuss the case and described her husband as caring and respectful.
Following the assault, Dhumal told authorities that the victim had made up the allegation because he failed to respond to a phone call from her.
