3 held for raping girl in Sylhet

Police have arrested three young men in Sylhet's Kanaighat Upazila on charges of abducting and gang-raping a mentally challenged girl.

A local court sent the accused to jail on Friday (July 4).

The arrested individuals are Shuvankar Das (27), a microbus driver from Umagor village in Kanaighat's Sadar union; Babul Ahmed (28), a CNG auto-rickshaw driver from Beerdol Kochupara village; and Fahad Mia (25), a pickup van driver from Chatigram village.

According to the case statement, the incident occurred on Tuesday night (July 1) when the girl went to bed with her mother. At around 1:00am, her mother woke to find the girl missing and the door of their house open.

The next morning, locals spotted the girl in a disoriented state with torn clothes at Baluchar in Kayasthagram village under South Banigram union of the Upazila.

Family members rushed to the scene and brought her home. During questioning, the girl said that three individuals had sexually assaulted her.

Locals also confirmed seeing Shuvankar, Babul, and Fahad taking the girl away in a vehicle from Beerdol Khalomora area.

On Thursday (July 3) afternoon, the family took the victim to Kanaighat Police Station, after which the police sent her to the One-Stop Crisis Centre (OCC) at Sylhet Osmani Medical College Hospital for treatment.

Later that night, police conducted raids and arrested the three accused.

The victim's mother said her daughter is mentally challenged and sometimes leaves the house unnoticed. The family would usually find her nearby and bring her back. On Tuesday night, she left home similarly but did not return.

Kanaighat Police Station Officer-in-Charge Abdul Awal said, "The three accused were sent to jail through the court on Friday. The girl's mother filed a case with the police over the incident."