The International Crimes Tribunal-2 on Thursday delivered a landmark verdict, sentencing former Member of Parliament Muhammad Saiful Islam and five others to death for their roles in the horrific Ashulia body-burning incident during the July-August 2024 mass uprising.
A three-member bench, led by Justice Nazrul Islam, convicted the six for crimes against humanity.
The other condemned convicts are former police officers AFM Syed, Abdul Malek, Biswajit Shaha and Mukul Chokdar, alongside Jubo League activist Rony Bhuiyan.
The case centers on the brutal killing of six youths on August 5 in 2024. According to investigators, police shot the victims during protests and subsequently piled their bodies onto a police van.
In a desperate attempt to destroy evidence, the officers covered the bodies with discarded clothes and banners before setting the vehicle ablaze.
A viral video of the scene, which shook the nation and sparked international outcry, became a pivotal piece of evidence. The footage showed officers casually loading a body onto a stack of others already on the van.
Most harrowing was the investigative finding that one of the victims was still alive when the fire was ignited, leading to an agonizing death.
Out of the 16 individuals accused in the case, eight are currently in custody, including high-ranking officials such as former Additional Superintendents Abdullahil Kafi and Shahidul Islam.
One accused, Constable Sheikh Abzalul Haque, was granted state witness status after pleading guilty.
The tribunal had formally framed charges on August 21 in 2024, following a complaint filed by the victims' families on September 11 in 2024.
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