A Cox's Bazar court yesterday sent a youth to jail on charges of raping a two-and-a-half-year-old girl child in the district's Ukhiya upazila.

The accused, Dildar Miah, 25, is a resident of Haldiapalong area in the same upazila.

Quoting the victim's family members, police said the girl was playing near her home at Asrayan project in Haldiapalong on Thursday afternoon. At one stage, Dildar took her to a secluded place and raped her before fleeing.

Hearing the screams of the child injured, locals rushed her to the upazila health complex, said Imrul Kayes Chowdhury, chairman of the local union parishad.

The victim's father filed a rape case with Ukhiya Police Station on Friday accusing Dildar. Police later arrested the accused.