The Thimphu District Court has sentenced 26-year-old Choten Tshering from Monggar to life imprisonment today for the murder of a 13-year-old girl at Pamtsho in Thimphu. The incident occurred in May this year. Additionally, the court has ordered the convict to serve another 14 years for “rape of a child above 12 years of age“. The two sentences are to be served consecutively for deterrence purposes.
According to the verdict, 26-year-old Choten Tshering is to pay Nu 492,875 to the victim’s family within six months from the date of the judgment.
The court based its decisions primarily on the convict pleading guilty, the CCTV footage submitted of various locations where the accused was seen walking towards the crime scene, and reconstruction video of the day of the crime. Furthermore, the genital examination reports of the deceased and the DNA reports confirmed that they were of the victim and the convict.
The incident took place on the 23rd of May when the 13-year-old victim went missing on her way to Dechenphu Lhakhang from home alone. The victim’s family filed a missing persons report around 8 PM the same day. The body was discovered the next day around noon along the Pamtsho-Dechencholing road. However, the man was detained after a few days from Ramthangka in Paro through CCTV footage.
The 13-year-old victim’s body was discovered with bruises on her neck and face along with blood on her thigh.
According to the verdict, the 26-year-old convict confessed to the court that he was seated on a culvert and was smoking when he met the victim. He had initially smoked dried marijuana with a cigarette. The victim had approached the convict asking for some money to visit the Lhakhang where he handed her Nu 500 asking her to accompany him. They had then walked a few meters towards the Lhakhang before the convict forcefully pulled the victim below the road.
The suspect had dragged the victim into a nearby forest and tried to kiss her. When she resisted his sexual advances, he hit her twice on her jawline making her go unconscious. He then removed her Kira along with the innerwear and engaged in non-consensual digital penetration.
He had gagged her with soil to silence her when she screamed after regaining her consciousness. He had strangled her with her rachu and covered the body with the kira and pine leaves on top. He had then picked a big boulder and hurled it on top of the body.
Tashi Dekar
Edited by Kipchu
