Md Al Amin, the 37-year-old stepfather of nine-year-old girl Maya, has been sentenced to death after being convicted of raping the child and then strangling her to death.
The verdict was announced by Bagerhat 1st additional district and sessions court judge, Md Hafizur Rahman.
The convict, who was present in court when the verdict was announced, has also been fined Tk1 lakh for the murder of the class III student.
According to case files, Al Amin married Maya’s mother Putul Begum in 2016. On the evening of December 20, 2016, Maya went missing. After a thorough search of the surrounding area, the police were informed and they eventually detained Al Amin for questioning.
In remand, he admitted to the murder and police recovered the body of the child from a nearby paddy field based on his confession.
The child’s grandfather, Dulal Howladar, filed a case against Al Amin with Sarankhola police station.
Sarankhola police station Sub-Inspector (SI) Amir Hossain filed a charge sheet for the case on April 21, 2017, with Al Amin as the prime suspect.
The court reached its verdict after a prolonged court battle involving the testimonies of 13 witnesses.