The Trongsa District Court has convicted the district’s former Kidu officer, who is currently residing abroad. He is sentenced to 10 years in prison for the rape of a 17-year-old girl. The judgment was passed last week. The Royal Bhutan Police have reportedly issued an Interpol Red Notice for the convict who is in Australia.
According to the verdict, Chencho Gyeltshen, the former kidu officer, has been sentenced to 10 years for rape of a child above 12 years and an additional three months and 17 days in prison for failing to attend court proceedings, as he could not be summoned.
The guarantor in this case has been sentenced to two years in prison for lying to the court by stating that Chencho Gyeltshen would be in the country in November 2022, for a court hearing.
In addition, the guarantor has been given an additional four months in prison for failing to attend the court proceedings, as he went abroad without withdrawing his guarantorship.
The court has ordered the 47-year-old convict to pay Nu 180,000 to the mother of the girl after the appeal period. The girl fell ill in 2022 and died in the same year.
The incident occurred in 2018 when Chencho Gyeltshen allegedly raped the girl at her house. The girl worked at a drayang. The police detained him the same night after the drayang owner lodged a complaint.
The convict left for Australia in 2018 after obtaining a No Objection Certificate while on bail. The forensic report did not establish rape at the time. The Trongsa police sent forensic samples of both the convict and the girl for DNA testing abroad and the report arrived in 2022.
Tashi Dekar
Edited by Phub Gyem
