Sambalpur: Police on Wednesday arrested a private tutor on charges of raping five students for years at Kundheikela in Deogarh district, about 90km from here.

The tutor had allegedly threatened to kill the minor girls if they disclosed the matter to their parents.

The accused, Rabindra Sahu, 44, of Tileisar village in Kundheikela police limits, also threatened the minor girls to make the video clippings of the acts viral on social media.

The arrest was made following a complaint, filed by a parent of a rape survivor, with Kundheikela police station alleging that her two daughters, who had been taking private coaching in his house, were raped.

Initially, the girls did not reveal their plights to anyone. But when things continued and they failed to tolerate it any more, the duo narrated the episode to their parents. Similarly, another three girls of the same village were also the rape survivors, the parent said in her complaint.

The complainant said when Sahu on Monday came across them on the street, he asked: "Why are you not sending your daughters to me for studies. When we flatly refused, he threatened us saying that he would make the picture of our daughters viral on social media. He also threatened to kill us."

For the past three years, Sahu had allegedly been raping the students. On various occasions, he used to call the girls to his bedroom and rape them. When the students could not bear it anymore, they discontinued the coaching at Sahu's house. Besides, for many days, their parents had also kept mum apprehending social stigma.

The police sent the girls to Chendipada hospital in Angul district for medical examination. "Post medical check-up, Sahu will be produced in court," Kundheikela police station inspector-in-charge Ratnakar Mullick said.