COVID-19 positive rape accused escapes from Kokarajhar hospital

Guwahati: In a sensational incident, a rape accused who was being treated for the COVID-19 virus at the Rupnath Brahma Civil Hospital in Kokrajhar, escaped from the isolation ward on Wednesday, July 29.

The escaped convict has been identified as Sukto Murmu, a 27-year-old rape accused hailing from the Chirang district. According to reports, Murmu fled from the hospital after breaking a windowpane.

The convict had been lodged at Kokrajhar district jail in connection with a rape case (No.112/20) registered at Dhaligaon Police Station under section 376D of the IPC on May 15 of 2020.

"We can confirm that the rape accused who originally hails from Chirang district, fled from the hospital late at night sensing an opportunity to escape. He had been arrested from Chirang, but was serving his sentence at the Kokrajhar jail. This particular accused tested COVID-19 positive 3-4 days ago, following which he was transferred to the hospital. We are conducting searches in both Chirang as well as Kokrajhar so far, but have not been able to trace him", Rakesh Roushan, Superintendent of Police, Kokrajhar, told The Sentinel Digital.

Murmu's escape has come at a time when the number of COVID-19 cases across the state has been rising at an unprecedented rate. Kokrajhar district in the Bodo-dominated BTAD region of Assam has already reported 408 cases of the coronavirus.

However, the recovery rate in the district is also exemplary; to date, as many as 338 patients have made recoveries from the respiratory illness.

Owing to the surge in the number of cases, as many as 3 areas in the district headquarters have been declared as containment zones.

The first of these containment zones has come up in the Gaurnagar locality, with the house of a certain Gopak Kar as the epicentre.

Another containment zone has been declared at the Rabindra Nagar locality, where the house of Manoj Sah is being considered the epicentre.

The third and the last containment zone has been declared in the Santinagar area, with the house of a certain Susma Sarkar as the epicentre.

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