A prominent social media content creator in northern Bangladesh is facing criminal charges after being accused of raping a 14-year-old girl in Netrokona district. The victim’s father formally lodged a case at the Netrokona Model Police Station on Tuesday night, triggering an official law enforcement hunt for the suspect, who has since gone into hiding.
The accused, identified as Ripon Mia, is the son of Monzil Mia from Dakshin Bishiura village in Netrokona Sadar Upazila. Though originally trained as a carpenter, Ripon gained widespread online notoriety under the moniker “Ripon Video” after he began producing comedic and lifestyle video clips on Facebook in 2016. Several years ago, he relocated from his ancestral home to reside in the neighbouring village of Nandura.
According to police sources and local accounts, Ripon had reportedly been harassing and stalking the adolescent girl, who lived in his immediate neighbourhood, for a considerable period. The situation escalated dramatically last Thursday night when he allegedly broke into the girl’s residence while she was alone and subjected her to sexual assault.
As news of the alleged assault began spreading throughout the community, local village elders and political figures attempted to settle the matter outside the formal justice system. On Monday night, an informal dispute arbitration, locally known as a salish, was convened at a local Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) office situated in a nearby market bazaar. The community panel ruled that Ripon was guilty of the act, ordering him to pay five lakh taka (£3,250) in monetary compensation to the victim’s family and imposing a strict sentence of banishment from the village. He was granted a one-week grace period to settle the fine and pack his belongings.
However, video footage of the illegal arbitration proceedings was surreptitiously filmed and leaked onto social media platforms over the following hours. The online dissemination of the clip sparked widespread public outrage and intense public scrutiny across the region. Prompted by the public outcry and pressure from civil society groups, the victim’s father bypassed the local settlement and sought formal legal recourse with state authorities the following evening.
Officers from Netrokona Model Police Station confirmed that a formal case has been registered under the country’s penal provisions governing violence against women and children. The Officer-in-Charge of Netrokona Model Police Station, Abul Khayer, verified the filing of the case and noted that law enforcement agencies have launched coordinated raids to track down the suspect. Investigators reported that Ripon fled his home shortly after the arbitration video went viral online, and police teams are currently executing operations across neighbouring districts to apprehend him and bring him to court.
