A woman and her school-going daughter were allegedly gang-raped during a robbery at their home in Matamuhuri upazila of Cox’s Bazar district early Monday.
Another robbery was reported in the same area the same night.
The incident took place around 2:30am in the Sikdarpara Dholnirghona area of Ward No. 3 under Purba Bara Bheola union.
Police have so far arrested six people in connection with the incidents.
The arrested are Rezaul Karim, 36, Tozazzel Hossain, 23, Kefayet Hossain, 27, Mohammad Tanzid, 24, Mehedi Hasan, 24, and Mohammad Tarek, 26. All are residents of the same upazila.
Police and local sources said the victim’s husband works in Chattogram city, while she lived in the house with her two daughters.
A group of 8 to 10 robbers reportedly broke into the house by cutting the window grill and looted gold ornaments and cash from an almirah.
At one stage during the robbery, the mother and her Class X student daughter were allegedly gang-raped, they said.
The victims’ relatives said the robbers fled the scene after the incident, leaving the two women in a distressed condition in separate rooms.
They were first taken to Chakaria Upazila Health Complex around 4am and later shifted to Cox’s Bazar Sadar Hospital as their condition deteriorated.
The victim’s mother, aged 65, demanded strict punishment for those involved, saying such a brutal incident had never occurred in the area before.
Meanwhile, at nearly the same time, another robbery took place at the house of expatriate Absar in Khaddachhara area near Lal Mosque in Ward No. 1 of the same union.
Robbers broke in by cutting window grills and looted cash and gold ornaments worth around Tk20 lakh.
Chakaria Police Station Officer-in-Charge Monir Hossain confirmed the incidents, saying police conducted operations and arrested six suspects so far.
Four of them were identified by victims as being involved in the crimes.
