Rape accused arrested

Police on Saturday arrested a youth on charge of violating a sixth grader girl in Gaibandha.           

The arrestee Mehedi Hasan Modern and his two accomplices came out of jail two years ago after suffering 14 years’ rigorous imprisonment in the sensational murder case of fourth grader Trisha in Gaibandha, said Moinul Huq, additional superintendent of police (ASP), Gaibandha.

On September 11, Modern and his accomplice Sabbir Hossain Bappi abducted a sixth grader girl student in Sadar upazila on her way to home from coaching. They forcibly took the girl on a motorcycle, raped her inside a mobile servicing shop at Boali, and went away with the victim.

Mother of the victim filed an FIR with Gaibandha Sadar Police Station against Modern and some others, alleging abduction of the girl. Police rescued the victim from Rangpur town next day and a regular case was filed under Women and Children Repression Prevention Act, but the accused fled away.

“Tipped off, a team of Gaibandha police arrested Modern from Dhaka on Saturday and produced him before a court in the afternoon. The court ordered sending him to jail. Drives are on to arrest the other accused Sabbir, said Khan Md Shahriar, OC Gaibandha Sadar Police Station.

“The victim told the magistrate that the criminals raped her several times. Her medical test has been conducted and sample of clothes and other things have been sent to Dhaka for DNA test,” said ASP Mainul Huq.

On July 17 in 2002, Sadia Sultana Trisha, a Class IV student in Gaibandha municipality, was returning home from school when Modern and his two accomplices chased her. In fear the victim jumped into the pond adjacent to their home and drowned.

Following a case, police arrested the three young boys and the then District and Sessions Judge awarded death sentence to them.

Later following an appeal by the lawyer of the convicts, Appellate Division of the Supreme Court reduced the punishment to 14 years’ rigorous imprisonment considering their tender age.