Mother raped while child held at knifepoint

A 28-year-old woman was raped while her one-and-a-half-year-old son was held at knifepoint in Panchagarh Sadar upazila on Friday night, according to a case filed yesterday.

The survivor was found unconscious with her child beside her near a roadside bush yesterday, said Abdullah Hil Zaman, officer-in-charge of Panchagarh Sadar Police Station.

She later filed the case, accusing four named and two to three unnamed individuals.

Police have so far arrested four: Jony Islam, 27; Biplob Hossain, 25; Moksedul Islam, 32; and Sadekul Islam, 32.

Speaking to reporters at a hospital, the survivor said, "As my husband left me some months ago, I moved to a place a few kilometers away from my parents' house to search for a job. As my son fell ill that night, I was taking him to my parents. We were travelling on a three-wheeler. On the way, I noticed another easy bike following us."

When they reached Tinmile area on the Panchagarh-Jagdal Road around 11:00pm, the vehicle following them caught up and stopped them.

The driver of the vehicle chasing them, who was known to the survivor, asked her to get off. "As soon as I got off, seven passengers from that vehicle dragged me and my child to a tea garden nearby."

Both vehicles then left the scene.

When the woman screamed in fear, the men held a knife to her child's throat to silence her, and then raped her. "Six of them raped me while another kept a lookout. At one stage, I lost consciousness."

According to OC Zaman, some locals heard the child crying around 12:30am and rushed to the spot. They found the child and his unconscious mother and immediately called 999, the national emergency helpline.

Police rescued the woman and her child and admitted them to a local hospital. After gaining consciousness, she named four of the perpetrators.

"Based on the case filed by the victim, four accused have already been arrested," added the OC.

A medical officer said the woman was brought to the hospital around 1:30am in an unconscious state. "There were signs of physical assault. We have collected samples for forensic tests."