Eight get life term in Faridpur gang-rape case

A court has sentenced eight accused to life imprisonment in a case of gang-raping a young woman after holding her captive in a kashban (reed field) in Faridpur Sadar upazila and filming the act on a phone. Each of them was also fined 200,000 taka.

Judge Shamima Parvin of the Women and Children Repression Prevention Tribunal in Faridpur (district and sessions judge) announced the verdict on Monday (9 November). The accused were present in court when the verdict was announced, and they were later sent to jail under strict police guard.

The convicted men are Md Shahin Sheikh (27), Joy Sheikh (30), Rahim Molla (29), Monir Sheikh (31), Hridoy Kha (26), Ilias Shikder (33), Mostak Sheikh (32) and Riaz Shikder. All of them live in the Kotwali police station area of Faridpur.

According to the case statement, the accused held the young woman captive in the kashban of Paldangi char near Dholar Mor in Faridpur Sadar upazila between 2pm and 2:30pm on 25 December 2019.

There, besides gang-raping her, they recorded a 23-second video on a mobile phone. After the incident, the accused left the area and went into hiding.

Later, when the video clip reached the district Detective Branch (DB) of police, action began.

In a special operation on 6 August 2020, police arrested the main accused, Shahin Sheikh. At that time, the then sub-inspector of DB police, Farhad Hossain, filed a case at Faridpur Kotwali police station as the complainant.

Based on information and a confession given by Shahin, police identified the remaining accused and submitted a charge sheet to the court after completing the investigation.

After a long trial and examination of evidence, the court delivered the verdict as the charges were proved.

Expressing satisfaction with the verdict, the state counsel (public prosecutor) Advocate Golam Rabbani Bhuiyan Ratan said the victim's family has received justice through this verdict.

He said exemplary punishment for such a heinous crime inside a char would play a major role in reducing the tendency towards crime in society.