Dhaka court sentences ‘Cross-eyed Robin’ to death over 2015 Jurain murder

A Dhaka court has sentenced Robin, alias “Cross-eyed Robin”, to death for the shooting and killing of a young man named Sohel in Jurain’s Rishipara around 11 years ago.

The verdict was delivered on Wednesday by Dhaka Additional Metropolitan Sessions Judge Md Khorshed Alam.

Two other accused in the case, Ripon and Masud, have been sentenced to life in prison.

Bench Assistant Milon Hossain said the court also imposed a fine of Tk 100,000 on Robin, with one year of prison in default.

Ripon and Masud were each fined Tk 200,000, with two years of prison in default of payment.

Of the three accused, only Robin is in custody.

He was produced before the court when the verdict was announced.

Since Ripon and Masud remain absconding, the court has issued arrest warrants against them along with their sentences.

The other two accused in the case – “Peyarir Pola Robin”, aka Robin-2, and Tanvir -- were acquitted, as the charges against them could not be proven. Both have been on the run since the case was opened.

Calling the murder “brutal and planned”, the judge said the crime had shaken the conscience of society.

“In the age of the internet, such brutal killings have spread across the world and disturbed humanity,” he said, adding that the court believed the criminals deserved the maximum punishment.

According to the case details, Sohel worked at a tailor’s shop in Keraniganj’s Kaliganj. His mother, Sufia Begum, had kept him in “safe custody” for about five months after he became involved with what she described as bad company.

He was released on Sept 10, 2015.

Soon after, Robin and others allegedly tried to lure him back into “various misdeeds”. When Sohel refused, they began threatening him.

On Sept 19, Sohel was sitting with his cousin Miraj at a restaurant in front of a local mosque when Robin and the others called him and took him to the roof of a one-storey house in Rishipara at around 3pm.

The complaint states Robin shot Sohel in the forehead and then stabbed him in the stomach, chest and throat to ensure his death before fleeing the scene.

Sohel’s mother filed a murder case with Kadamtali Police Station the same day.

After an investigation, Inspector Saiful Islam submitted a charge sheet against five people on Jan 31, 2017.

Charges were framed on Feb 9, 2020, and the trial began. The court recorded testimony from 19 witnesses.

Following the hearings and arguments from both sides, the court found Robin, Ripon and Masud guilty on Wednesday.