The High Court today confirmed death penalties for eight robbers out of 10 robbers and commuted the death sentence of the two others to life imprisonment for the rape and murder of a schoolgirl in Laxmipur in 2012.

According to the case statement, a gang of robbers swooped on the house of Krishna Lal Devnath at Dhutia village in Laxmipur Sadar upazila on July 18, 2012.

At one stage, the gang held the girl, a student of class VII, hostage at gunpoint and raped her before fleeing the spot after looting valuables. Relatives rushed the critically injured victim to Lakshmipur Sadar Hospital where on-duty doctors declared her dead, the case statement said.

Her father filed a case against unknown robbers the next day. Police pressed charges against 25 people on May 15, 2013.

On September 16, 2014, a Laxmipur court sentenced the 10 accused to death for raping and killing the schoolgirl.

Today, the HC bench of Justice Bhabani Prasad Singha and Justice Md Kamrul Hossain Mollah delivered the verdict after hearing the death reference of the case and appeals filed by the convicts against the trial court verdict.

The eight offenders whose death sentences were confirmed by the HC are -- Nur Nobi, Hedayet Ullah Hedu, Hiron, Saddam (absconding), Nur Alam, Manik (absconding), Rashed (absconding) and Sumon (absconding), Deputy Attorney General Md Amin Islam told The Daily Star.

Death sentences have been commuted to life imprisonment for Sohel and Anwar Hossain, he added.

DAG Aminul said the HC delivered the verdict as nine of the convicted accused have made confessional statements before the magistrate and their statements corroborated each other.  

Details of the HC verdict could not be known as its full text was not released today.

Barrister AM Mahbub Uddin Khokon represented the convicts who are in jail, while state appointed lawyers ASM Shafiqul Islam Kazal and Md Hafizur Rahman Khan argued for the absconding convicts.