Schoolgirl raped and murdered; body dumped in Hatirjheel

The body of an eighth-grader was recovered from Hatirjheel Lake on Sunday, 17 days after she went missing from Dhaka's Dakshinkhan.

The 13-year-old was abducted on January 16 and later gang-raped and murdered, but the crime came to light after her body was recovered, said Rawnaq Jahan, deputy commissioner (DC) of the Uttara Division, in a press briefing yesterday.

Two suspects, Robin Hossain, 32, and Rabbi Mridha, 26, were arrested on January 30 in Sreepur of Gazipur, in connection with the crime, said the Uttara DC.

Her father filed a general diary (GD) with Dakshinkhan Police Station on January 19 and later lodged a kidnapping case on January 27 after learning from locals that a group of men had abducted her in a private car near Joynal Market in Dakshinkhan.

Using technological assistance, police traced the suspects through the victim's mobile number and arrested Robin and Rabbi. The two were remanded for two days following a court order on January 31.

During interrogation, they admitted to their involvement in the crime and led police to recover the victim's body from a roadside slope in Hatirjheel at 8:45am on Sunday.

In their confession under Section 164 of the Criminal Procedure Code, Robin and Rabbi said they trapped the victim and took her to a house in Mohakhali, where the two along with three others raped her after tying her hands, feet, and face.

They then wrapped her body in a bag and dumped it near Hatirjheel using a rickshaw. Police are now working to arrest the remaining suspects involved in the rape and murder, added the official.

Meanwhile, Bangladesh Mahila Parishad yesterday expressed deep concern and outrage over the incident.

The organisation demanded swift justice, and urged the authorities to ensure exemplary punishment for the culprits.

The organisation said, "Such heinous acts are not only alarming but also severely impact women's and girls' ability to live freely and move forward in life."

The statement was signed by Fauzia Moslem, president of Mahila Parishad, and Maleka Banu, its general secretary.