A court in Odisha’s Kandhamal district has sentenced five persons to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment after convicting them of dacoity and gangrape of a minor girl at gunpoint 16 months ago.

Fast-track court judge Kailash Chandra Swain of Phulbani also imposed a fine of Rs 26,000 on each of the convicts, special public prosecutor Banamali Behera said Wednesday.

All the convicts, aged between 24 and 47 years, hail from Daringbadi police limits, he said.

“In case of default in payment of the fine, each convict will have to undergo imprisonment for an additional five years,” the court said.

According to the prosecution, the masked miscreants, armed with a pistol and dagger, entered the victim’s house on the night of April 24, 2024, and looted her gold necklace, earrings and Rs 50,000 in

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