The police on Thursday submitted a charge sheet against a man in a case filed over the rape of a four-year-old child in Chattogram city.

The charge sheet named arrested suspect Monir Hossain, 30, as the lone accused in the case, said the police.

Bakalia police officer-in-charge Mohammad Solaiman said that the charge sheet was submitted to a Chattogram court within five working days of the investigation and 14 days after the incident.

‘The charge sheet was submitted on the basis of the medical report, the confessional statement of the accused recorded under Section 164 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, DNA report and other evidence collected through the investigation,’ the OC said.

He also said that the case documents would now be sent from the docket section to the sixth cognisance court.

Chattogram Metropolitan Police deputy commissioner for the south division Hossain Kabir Bhuiyan said that 10 people were named as prosecution witnesses in the charge sheet.

‘The charge sheet was submitted a day after the DNA report was received on Wednesday,’ he said, adding that the accused earlier gave a confessional statement before the court under Section 164.

The police said that case investigation officer Bakalia police inspector Tanvir Ahmed submitted the charge sheet under Section 9(1) of the Women and Children Repression Prevention Act.

On the May 21 afternoon, the four-year-old child was raped inside a warehouse beside Bhai Bhai Decoration near Nur Hossain Chairman Ghata Balur Mat under Ward 19 of Bakalia.

The victim later gave her statement before a magistrate under Section 22 of the Women and Children Repression Prevention Act, according to the police.

Besides collecting DNA samples of the accused and the victim, recording their statements, analysing medical evidence, the police also recorded the statements of the witnesses under Section 161 of the Code of Criminal Procedure.

Monir, son of Mohammad Alam and Rezia Begum of Muradnagar in Cumilla and a resident of Mia Khan Nagar in Bakalia, is now in jail custody.

The child’s father filed the case with the Bakalia police, naming Monir as the lone accused.

On May 21, the incident sparked protests in the area and the police faced resistance from the residents when they went to arrest the suspect, causing them to fire tear gas shells and sound grenades.

At least 40 people, including police personnel, journalists and local residents, were injured in the clashes on the day.