Man to walk the gallows, fined Tk1 lakh for 2024 rape-murder of 9-yr-old in Cumilla
Following a thorough police investigation, a formal chargesheet was submitted, culminating in the death sentence after an extensive judicial process
A Cumilla court sentenced a man to death yesterday (15 July) for raping and subsequently murdering a nine-year-old boy in Burichang Upazila of the district in 2024. The court also fined the convict Tk1 lakh.
Judge Abdul Hannan of the Cumilla District and Sessions Judge Court, who also serves as the judge of the Women and Children Repression Prevention Tribunal, pronounced the verdict.
The convict, Billal Hossain, is the son of Harunur Rashid, hailing from Purnamati village under Burichang Upazila.
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According to Special Public Prosecutor Advocate Badiul Alam Sujan of the Women and Children Repression Prevention Tribunal, the court handed down the capital punishment under Section 9(2) of the Women and Children Repression Prevention Act, 2000 (Amended 2003), as the prosecution successfully proved the charges beyond a shadow of doubt.
The conviction stems from Burichang Police Station Case No 5 of 2024 and Tribunal Case No 271/26. The verdict was delivered following the depositions of 14 witnesses, and the convict was present in the dock during the announcement.
Inspector Md Sadekur Rahman of the court's police confirmed that Billal Hossain was sent to the Cumilla Central Jail directly after the court issued his death warrant.
Detailing the background, Advocate Badiul Alam Sujan noted that the incident was initially filed as a missing person's report before police investigations exposed a brutal murder.
On 30 September 2024, the victim, Yasin, 9, son of local tea stall owner Akkas Miah of Purnamati village, went missing.
Unable to locate him, the family filed a general diary (GD) with Burichang Police Station on 1 October that year. Four days later, police recovered Yasin's body from a fishpond near the Dhaka-Chattogram Highway in the Mokam area of Burichang Upazila.
The following day, on 6 October 2024, a murder case was filed with Burichang Police Station naming Billal Hossain and several unidentified individuals.
Following a thorough police investigation, a formal chargesheet was submitted, culminating in the death sentence after an extensive judicial process.
