A Kerala court on Monday acquitted Malayalam actor Dileep in the high-profile case concerning the 2017 sexual assault of a South Indian actress in Kochi.

While Dileep walked free, the court convicted six others—including the prime accused, Sunil N S, also known as Pulsar Suni—who directly carried out the assault. Three additional individuals were also acquitted alongside Dileep.

The verdict was delivered by Ernakulam Principal Sessions Judge Honey M Varghese, who had wrapped up the extensive trial proceedings on November 25.

The incident, in which the actress — known for her work in Tamil, Telugu and Malayalam cinema — was assaulted after her car was hijacked for two hours, had deeply shocked Kerala society.

According to the prosecution, multiple individuals forced their way into her vehicle on the night of February 17, 2017, and later fled in a crowded area.

The ten accused who stood trial were Sunil NS alias Pulsar Suni, Martin Antony, Manikandan B, Vijesh V P, Salim H, Pradeep, Charly Thomas, actor Dileep (real name P Gopalakrishnan), Sanil Kumar alias Mesthri Sanil, and Sharath.

Police arrested the suspects shortly after the attack and filed the first charge sheet against seven of them in April 2017.

As the investigation progressed, Dileep was taken into custody on July 10, 2017, after the probe team discovered that Suni had allegedly sent him a letter from jail.

Dileep later secured bail on October 3, 2017.