A seven-year-old girl, who was rescued with her throat slit from Sitakunda Eco Park, has died at Chattogram Medical College Hospital (CMCH).
She succumbed to her injuries in the hospital’s Intensive Care Unit (ICU) in the early hours of Tuesday. Doctors confirmed the child was raped and bore severe injury marks on her body.
Brigadier General Mohammad Taslim Uddin, Director of CMCH confirmed her death.
The child underwent surgery on her throat on Sunday night.
She was taken to the hospital’s One-Stop Crisis Centre (OCC) on Monday when her condition deteriorated. Doctors later transferred her back to the ENT ward.
According to physicians and family, the child suffered grievous internal injuries. They found cut marks on her thighs and other parts of her body. Doctors confirmed clear evidence of sexual assault.
Family members said the child tried to convey some information through gestures before she died. They said she indicated a name, though it remained unclear.
Workers repairing the road to Chandranath Temple rescued the child from a remote hilly area of Sitakunda Botanical Garden and Eco-park on Sunday morning.
They first spotted her and took her to Sitakunda Upazila Health Complex. Doctors referred her to CMCH as her condition worsened.
The child’s mother filed a case with Sitakunda Police Station on the night of March 1, following the incident.
Officer-in-Charge (OC) Mohinul Islam said they initially filed a case against unknown persons on charges of abduction and attempted murder. Following the child’s death, they will convert it to a murder case.
“The body remains in the CMCH morgue. We will hand it over for burial after the autopsy,” the OC said. “We are actively investigating the matter” he added.
