15-year-old allegedly picked up at knifepoint, gang-raped by eight men in Cox’s Bazar

A 15-year-old girl was allegedly picked up at knifepoint and gang raped by a group of eight unidentified men in Chakaria of Cox's Bazar last night (5 January).

The incident took place at around 10:30pm near the east end of the Badarkhali-Moheskhali Bridge in Chakaria, said Cox's Bazar's Additional Superintendent of Police (Traffic and Media) Jasim Uddin Chowdhury.

The victim, a resident of Moheskhali, was rescued later by some passersby and taken to a local hospital. After getting medical treatment there, the girl was handed over to her family, according to the police official.

Speaking about the incident, the victim today (6 January) told reporters that she was on her way home on a CNG-run auto-rickshaw from Badarkhali. When the vehicle reached the middle of the bridge, it suddenly stopped and the driver claimed that it was due to engine failure.

She said she got off the three-wheeler and started walking towards the east end of the bridge when an unknown youth stopped and hand-gagged her. "When I wanted to scream, another young man threatened me with a knife, and they forcibly took me to the nearby mangrove forest."

According to her statement, at first, the two men brutally abused her. Later, two more men joined them in the crime. After that, the victim was taken deeper into the forest, where she was again abused by another four men, causing her to lose consciousness from the pain at one point.

She started crying for help after she returned to her senses. Some locals heard her screams and rescued her. She was later admitted to Badarkhali General Health Complex.

Meanwhile, police official Jasim said they had visited the crime scene and collected some evidence samples. No one has been apprehended over the incident yet.

"Based on the information given by the victim, we are conducting an operation to identify the criminals and arrest them," he said.

He also said police would register a case over the incident if the victim or her family filed a written complaint.

Disclaimer: This article had been updated to correct the number of alleged rapists to eight from four