4 June 2012— On her way from tailoring work to home, Ma Thida Htwe, 27, daughter of U Hla Tin, of Thabyechaung Village, Kyauknimaw Village-tract, Yanbye Township, was stabbed to dead by unidentified people at the mangrove near a rain tree beside the embankment road leading to Kyaukhtayan Ward of Kyauknimaw Village and Chaungwa Village at 5.15 pm on 28 May.

A complaint over the case was lodged to Kyauknimaw Police Station by U Win Maung, a brother of the victim. The police station opened the case under Section 302/382 (murder/robery) of Criminal Procedure Law.

The head of Kyaukpyu District MPF and party went to Kyauknimaw Village on 29 May morning and reconstructed the related clues and interrogated three suspects, namely, Htet Htet (a) Rawshi, son of U Kyaw Thaung (Bengali/Islam), of Kyauknimaw (south ward), Rawphi, son of Sweyuktamauk (Bengali/Islam) of Kyauknimaw (Thaya ward) and Khochi, son of Akwechay (Bengali/ Islam), of Kyauknimaw (Thaya ward).

The investigation revealed that Htet Htet (a) Rawshi knew the daily routine of the victim who commuted between Thabyechaung Village and Kyauknimaw Village for tailoring. He, in badly need of money for marrying a girl, plotted to rob her of her valuables she wears. Together with Rawphi and Khochi, Rawshi waited at the rain tree near the scene. Seeing her returning home alone, the three pointed her with a knife and took her to the woods where they raped and stabbed her to dead, taking away five kinds of gold jewellery including MC gold chain.

In order to avoid racial riots and threat of villagers to the suspects, the Township Administrator and the head of the Township MPF were monitoring the situations and sent the three to Kyaukpyu Jail on at 10.15 am on 30 May. At 1.20 pm the same day, about 100 Rakhine nationals of Kyauknimaw arrived at Kyauknimaw Police Station and demanded to return the three to them who were explained by officials concerned that the three had already been sent to Kyaukpyu Jail. However, the group, unsatisfied with it, was attempting to enter the police station which in return had to fire five shots to disperse them. At 1.50 pm the same day, about 100 Rakhine nationals of Kyauknimaw Village left for Yanbye and the Kyaukpyu District Deputy Commissioner and the head of Kyaukpyu Police Station also went to Yanbye to prevent disturbance and ensure prevalence of law and order settling the problems with the villagers.

At 4 pm on 30 May, the District/Township level departmental officials and Yanbye Township Pyithu Hluttaw representative U Ba Kyi made clarifications to avoid disturbance at Yanbye Township Administrator Office, and the villagers left the office at 5.40 pm. At 9 am on 31 May, they left Yanbye for Kyauknimaw Village with two boats. The Villagers accepted K 1 million donated for the village and K 600,000 for the victim’s funeral by the State Transportation Minister U Kyaw Khin and five sets of robes and K 100,000 by the State Hluttaw representative U Than Naing for the victim’s funeral.

At 3.5 pm on 31 May, the State Security and Border Affairs Minister, the deputy head of the State Police Station, the Kyaukphyu District Deputy Commissioner and the head of the District Police Station participated in the victim’s funeral and held discussions with the villagers. At 9 am on 1 June, the State Chief Minister and party left for Kyaukpyu and held discussions with the Kyaukyu Township youth organization over the murder case. The discussions mainly touched upon handing down deterrent punishment on the murderers soonest and helping prevent riots when they are being brought to trial.