Five sentenced to death for killing man over fishing dispute in Chattogram

Among the convicts are three brothers

A Chattogram court has sentenced five men to death for killing a man in 2011 in a dispute over fishing in a canal in Anwara Upazila.

Chattogram Additional District and Sessions Judge Rozina Khan delivered the verdict on Monday.

The convicts are Ahmad Mia, Md Ilias, Nurul Absar, Md Rafique and Md Solaiman.

Among them, Ahmad, Ilias and Nurul are siblings.

Ilyas and Nurul were present in court during the ruling, while the remaining three are absconding.

Court bench assistant Hafiz Ahmed told bdnews24.com, “All five suspects were found guilty of murder under Section 302 and sentenced to death, along with a fine of Tk 50,000 each.”Three other suspects -- Abdul Kuddus, Md Enam and Md Anwar -- were acquitted as the charges against them could not be proven.According to court documents, 55-year-old Abdu Shukkur was killed in the Dasher Vita area of Ward No. 8 of Chatari Union under Anwara Police Station.He was a resident of Paschim Singhra village and worked in land trading.On Aug 19, 2011, an argument broke out between Shukkur and the accused over placing fishing nets in a local canal.Later that night, an unidentified caller phoned Shukkur and asked him to come to the intersection near Anwara Health Complex.He left home that night and went missing.The next morning, on Aug 21, local resident Md Shahidullah discovered his body in a paddy field.Police later recovered the body.Shukkur’s son Md Mizan filed a case alleging his father was killed with locally made weapons.Charges were framed in 2012, and the verdict followed testimony from 10 witnesses.