Rangpur 'Gang-rape': One of five accused arrested

Two students of a private nurse training institute in Rangpur city were allegedly gang-raped six days ago.

One of the victims filed a rape case with Rangpur Sadar Police Station against five people, including a classmate of theirs, on Tuesday night, five days after the incident.

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The accused are Alamgir Kabir, 22, of Nilphamari's Jaldhaka, Shakil Ahmed, 23, Mohammad Polash, 25, Shah Alam, 28, and Mohammad Manik, 28, of Rangpur.

Of them, police arrested Alamgir Kabir, a third-year student of Northern Nursing Institute and a classmate of the victims, soon after the case was lodged.

Police said Alamgir already confessed his involvement in the crime.

Police produced Alamgir before Senior Judicial Magistrate's Court of Shafiul Alam yesterday, seeking a 10-day day remand for the arrestee. But the court granted a five-day remand, said Inspector (investigation) Abdul Aziz, also investigation officer of the case.

Quoting the case statement, ABM Zahidul Islam, officer-in-charge of Rangpur Sadar Police Station, said the girls went to a student mess at Sardarpara in the city on  October 27 evening to collect class notes from their classmate Nimai Chandra Sharma. 

Alamgir, who stays in the same mess, took them inside the mess when the girls reached there. He then went out of the mess and returned after a while with four other youths.

Later, the youths tied up Nimai, confined the girls to a room and forced them to take off their clothes. They also recorded videos of the girls with their mobile phones and raped them in separate rooms. The "rapists" let the girls go after two hours, threatening them to upload the clips on the internet if the incident was disclosed to anyone, the OC said.

Twelve students reside in the mess. But on that day, nobody was there except Nimai and Alamgir. 

After coming back to their hostel, the girls informed their families of the incident.

Family members then informed the nursing institute authorities of the matter, but they urged the family members to settle the issue by negotiation, alleged family members of the complainant of the case while talking to this correspondent. 

Contacted, Sufia Khatun, principal of the institute, said she learnt about the incident on Monday and sought police help for lodging a case.

Hearing the incident, Rahat Anwar, deputy commissioner of Rangpur, visited Rangpur Sadar Police Station on that night and assured the girls of providing support.

Medical tests of the victims were performed at Rangpur Medical College Hospital yesterday.

Police were trying to arrest the other accused in the case, the OC said.