A man suspected of raping and murdering a disabled teenager has been killed in a shootout with police in Faridpur.
The incident took place near a bridge in the city's Rathkhola Launch Ghat around 2am on Monday, said Faridpur Kotwali Police Sub-Inspector Belal Hossain.
The dead man, identified as Yasin Molla, 22, was implicated in at least three cases with the police, reports bdnews24.com.
Law enforcers also marked him out as a suspect in the murder of a 14-year-old mentally challenged girl. Her body was recovered from the boundaries of the BTCL office next to the Rajendra College on Dec 13, a day after she had been reported missing.
Police said the killer had strangled the girl to death by wrapping her clothes around her neck. The authorities also found multiple stab wounds around her body.
Police also suspect that the girl had been raped before her death based on the state that they found her body in.
The incident has caused a stir in Faridpur city with several rights groups staging demonstrations to demand that the killer be brought to justice.
The girl's father started a case against unidentified suspects under the Women and Children Repression Prevention Act with Kotwali police on Dec 13.
Police identified Yasin as a suspect upon analysing the security camera footage of the Rajendra College's field in the course of its investigation.
"Yasin was arrested from the city's Wireless Para with the help of locals on Sunday. He later admitted to raping and killing the girl during interrogation," said SI Belal.
Based on the confession, law enforcers set out to recover Yasin's clothes and the weapon he used in the wee hours of Monday with the suspect in tow, according to police.
"When the police reached the twin bridges in Rathkhola Launch Ghat, his associates attacked the law enforcers in a bid to snatch him away. A gunfight later ensued between the police and the criminals but when the armed assailants eventually retreated, law enforcers found a bullet-ridden Yasin lying on the ground."
Yasin was subsequently rushed to Faridpur Medical College Hospital where the on-duty doctor declared him dead, said SI Belal.
Three policemen were also injured in the shootout and were admitted to a hospital, he added.