Photo: BSS

COX'S BAZAR, Oct 21, 2025 (BSS) - A court here today sentenced five people to death and four people, including three women, to life imprisonment for kidnapping and killing two siblings at Ramu upazila of the district in 2016.

Judge of Women and Child Repression Prevention Tribunal-2 Md. Osman Gani delivered the verdict on Tuesday afternoon, said state lawyer Mir Mosharraf Hossain Titu. 

The death row convicts are Jahangir Alam, Abdus Shukkur, Alamgir Hossain Prakash Bulu, Mizanur Rahman and Md. Shahidullah, residents of Barabil area of Gorjania union of the upazila. 

Those sentenced to life imprisonment are Abdul Majid Badaiya, Fatema Khatun, Rasheda Begum and Laila Begum of the same area. 

According to prosecution, on the afternoon of January 17, 2016, the convicts kidnapped Hasan alias Shakil, 11, and his brother Md. Hossain alias Kajal, 8, sons of Md. Forkan alias Mintu of the same area while they were playing near their house.

After the kidnapping, the kidnappers demanded a ransom of Taka four lakh from the family over a mobile phone that night. 

Later, when the children could not be found, the father of the children filed a case against unknown accused with Garjania Police Station on January 19, 2016.

Police arrested two accused immediately after the case was registered. Later, according to the confessions of the arrested accused, police recovered the bodies of the two children.

On April 7, 2016, the investigating officer of the case submitted a charge sheet against the accused. Then, the court framed charges against the accused on March 20, 2019. 

The court also fined them of various amounts. The main accused Jahangir Alam was present when the verdict was announced. 

All the others are absconding. The court acquitted a young woman named Mokarma Sultana Putu as she was proven innocent.