COIMBATORE: In a significant development in the case related to the gang rape of a college student near the Coimbatore airport, a Coimbatore Court on Friday sentenced three men to life imprisonment till death, delivering the verdict within 126 days of the crime after a fast-tracked investigation and trial.

The judgment was delivered by Coimbatore All Women Court judge Sundarrajan, who held the three accused guilty under multiple charges, including gang rape.

The case relates to the November 2 incident last year, when a 21-year-old college student from Madurai, studying at a private college in Coimbatore, was sexually assaulted near Brindavan Nagar behind the Coimbatore airport.

The accused threatened the girl and her male friend with a sickle and assaulted the latter when he resisted, damaging the car windshield and injuring him. They then dragged the student to a nearby bushy area and gang raped her, police said.

Satheesh alias Karuppasamy (30), Karthik alias Kaaleeswar (21), and their relative Thavasi (20) were convicted of rape and assault charges.

Investigators identified the suspects using CCTV footage and mobile phone details. Police filed the first chargesheet on December 1 last year, followed by a supplementary chargesheet on January 8. The chargesheets together ran to about 350 pages and included forensic evidence and DNA reports.

During the trial, 112 witnesses were listed and 72 examined, including the survivor, her male friend, her mother, and investigating officers.

After hearing arguments from both sides, the court convicted the three accused and sentenced them to life imprisonment till death under Section 70(1), along with additional prison terms under other provisions.

The court also directed the government to provide Rs 7 lakh compensation to the survivor and Rs 2 lakh to the injured male friend.

The verdict came within four months of the incident, following what police described as a fast-tracked investigation and trial.