BANGLADESH: 7 SENTENCED TO DEATH, 5 TO LIFE IN PRISON FOR MURDER IN CUMILLA

June 22, 2023:

A court has handed down the death penalty to seven people and sentenced five others to life in prison for the murder of a plumber in Cumilla in 2006.
Additional District and Sessions Judge Jahangir Hossain delivered the verdict on June 18, 2023, according to prosecutor Rafiqul Islam.
As many as 16 people were charged in the case, nine of whom were in court for the verdict.
Meanwhile, four others were acquitted by the court.
Rana Khan was killed when he intervened in a drug deal in Cumilla Sadar Upazila, according to the case dossier.
The capital punishment recipients are Md Shipon, Ripon Mia, Alauddin, Md Jewel, Shuvo, Kajol and Habib. Three of them, Shuvo, Kajol and Habib, are still on the run.
Meanwhile, Badal Mia, Jahirul Islam, Anwar Hossain, Iqbal Hossain and Md Sohel were handed life sentences. Badal and Iqbal are absconding.
Lawyer Rafiqul said the convicts were all involved in different crime rings, including drug peddling, in Cumilla.
Citing the case dossier, Rafiqul said the convicts slit Rana’s throat and cut off his genitalia after he tried to interfere in a drug deal on May 1, 2006.
Jahangir Khan, the father of Rana who was a native of Champaknagar, lodged a case with Cumilla’s Kotwali Model Police Station the following day, accusing six individuals.
The investigation officer of the case later named 10 others in the chargesheet. The court heard the testimonies of 14 witnesses before reaching its verdict, Rafiqul said.
The convicts were also fined Tk 30,000 each, failure to pay which will result in an additional six months in jail.