Assam: Rape accused dies in police custody after ‘jumping’ into pond while ‘trying to escape’

A man accused in the alleged gangrape of a 14-year-old girl in Assam’s Nagaon district died in police custody on Saturday after he attempted to escape by “jumping” into a pond, The Indian Express reported.

The 24-year-old, identified as Tafazul Islam, was among the three persons accused in the gangrape case. The incident took place on Thursday in the district’s Dhing area. He was the only accused arrested by the police so far.

In the early hours of Saturday, Islam was taken to the scene of the incident near a pond when he attempted to escape, the police said.

“After he was interrogated, he was taken to the crime scene,” The Indian Express quoted Nagaon Superintendent of Police Swapnaneel Deka as saying. “It is there that he tried to escape and jumped into a lake.”

The incident occurred around 3.30 am on Saturday, according to The Hindu.

Deka added that the area was cordoned off immediately and that the State Disaster Response Force was alerted.

“After the SDRF [State Disaster Response Force] searched, they recovered the body,” the police official said. “Our constable, who was holding his [Islam’s] handcuffs, has got some injury in his hand and has been sent for treatment.”

The Print quoted Deka as saying that Islam “slipped and fell” into the pond after he pushed a constable and tried to escape. “We tried...

Read more