Dhing (Assam): The prime accused in the gang-rape of a 14-year-old girl in the Dhing area of Assam's Nagaon district died after he allegedly jumped into a pond with handcuffs when the police took him to the spot to recreate the crime scene early Saturday morning.
According to the police, Taffazul Islam was arrested on Friday and was taken to the location for crime scene recreation. He then allegedly escaped the police custody and jumped into a pond.
The body of the prime accused was eventually recovered from a pond. "When a police team took him last night to the spot for investigation where the incident took place, the prime accused tried to flee and jumped into a pond located nearby the site. Our police personnel engaged in a search operation and with the help of the SDRF team we recovered his body from the pond this morning," SP Nagaon Swapnaneel Deka said.
The minor girl was allegedly gang-raped by three individuals when she was returning home from the tuition centre on Thursday night. According to police, the crime took place when the victim, riding on a bicycle, was attacked and gang-raped.
The passers-by spotted the girl near a pond in the area and rushed her to a nearby hospital. After committing the crime, the accused dropped the girl at the spot who was semi-conscious for more than an hour before being rescued by the locals.
The victim is undergoing treatment at a hospital, and her condition is stable as of now, doctors attending to her said. The police jumped into action and arrested two individuals on suspicion of having links with the incident.
Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma warned of stern action against the culprits involved in the heinous crime. He has also instructed the Director General of Police to rush to the crime scene for a quick investigation. The Chief Minister took to social media platform X and wrote, "The horrific incident at Dhing, involving a minor, is a crime against humanity and has struck our collective conscience. We will NOT SPARE anyone and BRING the perpetrators to JUSTICE. I've directed the DGP of Assam Police to visit the site and ensure swift action against such monsters."
Meanwhile, anger erupted among locals over the incident, and they kept the shops and other business establishments closed for the day in the Dhing locality as a mark of protest.
