A special tribunal in Noakhali on Monday sentenced a 26-year-old man to death for raping and murdering his five-year-old cousin in Chatkhil upazila in 2022. The court also fined the convict Tk 100,000 after finding the charges proven beyond reasonable doubt.
A special tribunal in Noakhali on Monday sentenced a man to death for raping and murdering his five-year-old cousin in Chatkhil upazila.
Judge Farzana Akter of the Special Tribunal for the Prevention of Violence Against Women and Children delivered the verdict, sentencing Shahadat Hossain, 26, to death and imposing a fine of Tk 100,000.
The convict, son of Babul Hossain, is a resident of Megha village under Badalkot Union in Chatkhil and was the victim's paternal cousin.
Public Prosecutor Selim Shahi of the Women and Children Repression Prevention Tribunal confirmed the verdict, saying the court ordered that the convict be hanged until death. Shahadat was present in the courtroom when the judgment was delivered.
According to the prosecution, the child went missing from her home at around 1:30 pm on March 24, 2022. Nine days later, police recovered her body from a septic tank behind the house based on information provided by the accused.
During the investigation, Shahadat was arrested and later confessed before a magistrate that he had raped the child and then strangled her to death to prevent the incident from being disclosed. He also admitted to dumping the body in the septic tank.
The victim's father, Maulana Shahjahan, filed a case with Chatkhil Police Station on April 6, 2022, naming Shahadat as the sole accused.
After examining witnesses and evidence during the trial, the court found the charges proven beyond reasonable doubt and awarded the death penalty along with the monetary fine.
-HIS
