Tourist gang-raped in Cox’s Bazar, hotel manager arrested
A female tourist on Wednesday was reportedly gang-raped by local youths in Cox's Bazar as they held her husband and their eight-year-old child hostage.
RAB-15 rescued the woman from a motel early Thursday. They also arrested the hotel manager Riaz Uddin, 33, and identified three accused youths from CCTV footage.
The victims' husband filed a case around 8pm on Thursday with Cox's Bazar Model police station, 12 hours after the incident, accusing seven people.
In the case, four names were mentioned while three were unknown. The four are Ashiqul Islam, 23, son of late Abdul Karim of Baharchhara, Israfil Huda Joy, son of Shafiq Prakash Gunda, and Mehedi Hasan, son of Abul Kashem.
Major Mehedi Hasan, CPC commander of Cox's Bazar RAB-15, told The Business Standard that they have started a shadow investigation into the incident after the housewife, her husband and child were rescued.
"We have identified two of the three criminals," he added.
Of them, Ashiqul is a notorious criminal in the area against whom there are 16 cases including for murder, drugs, rape, hijacking and women repression. Ashiq has just been released from jail on 7 December.
Locals alleged that all of the three are accomplices of district Chhatra League president Saddam. Pictures of the accused with Cox's Bazar district Chhatra League president Saddam went viral on social media after the incident.
But Saddam denied any involvement with them, saying many come to take photos with him.
According to the victim, the family of three went to Cox's Bazar on Wednesday morning from Jatrabari of Dhaka. They booked a room in the hotel at the Holiday intersection. Her husband accidentally stumbled upon a stranger while strolling at Laboni Point in Kolatoli beach later in the day. This led to an altercation following which her husband and child were picked up in a CNG autorickshaw from in front of the tourist golf course in the evening.
At that time, three youths picked the victim up in another CNG autorickshaw and raped her behind a shacky tea stall across the golf course.
Later, they took her to Zia Guest Inn and raped her again after consuming yaba pills there.
The perpetrators then locked the room and fled the scene after threatening to kill her husband and child if the incident gets reported.
The victim was quick to seek help through the window of the room on the third floor of the inn and managed to contact the RAB who then came and rescued her at 1:30am.
Her husband and children were rescued from the tourist golf course area.
"We came here on a family vacation after getting my salary. How could they do this to us just over a slight push?" lamented the victim's husband.
He said, "I had implored them repeatedly to return my wife but they refused. I am now worried because her condition is not good."
Lt Colonel Khairul Islam Sarkar of Cox's Bazar RAB-15 said whoever is involved in the heinous crime should be severely punished.
Regarding the allegation that the Cox's Bazar sadar thana police did not come to help the rape victim after receiving call on 999, the OC of the thana Sheikh Munir Ul Gias said they received no such calls from 999 since Wednesday afternoon. They have kept the victim tourist in their one-stop-crisis centre. Filing of the case is under process.
However, Cox's Bazar additional police super Rafiqul Islam said if this allegation is found to be true stringent measures would be taken against the officers who neglected duty.
