Bantala/Angul: A local court Tuesday sentenced four persons to life imprisonment after convicting them in a 2017 case of gangrape of a student at Panchmohalla in this district.
The convicts were identified as Krushna Chandra Naik, Biswambhar Bhoi, of Panchmohalla, Dushmant Behera of Lingarajodi village and Siddhant palei of Raijaharan village under Nisha police limits.
District and sessions judge Sanjay Keshari Swain also imposed a penalty of Rs 25,000 each on the accused. In default, the convicts have to undergo an additional six months of imprisonment, the judge observed while adjudicating the case.
According to the case diary, the incident occurred when the survivor was going somewhere with her male cousin March 31, 2017 when six persons waylaid them and took them to a deserted place and demanded money from them.
The miscreants assaulted them and snatched their mobile phone, earrings of the girl, a locket and Rs 700 when the two expressed their inability to pay them money.
Later, they dragged the girl and took turns on her while one of them recorded the act on a mobile phone. They threatened to make the video viral on social media if the duo failed to pay them Rs 20,000. Police led by then IIC Bindu Basini Biswal started an investigation after the survivor’s family lodged a complaint in Angul police station April 1, 2017.
Police arrested five accused including a minor April 14 while another remained elusive. The incident had then spread shockwaves in the area with residents demanding stringent punishment to the accused.
The judge passed the order on basis of statements recorded by 21 witnesses. Public Prosecutor Mahendra Kumar Bastia pleaded the matter on behalf of the state government.
PNN