A 16-year-old boy in Patuakhali’s Galachipa upazila was tied to a tree and thrashed by a group of people for allegedly stealing money.

The matter came to light after a video of the brutal assault went viral on social media, prompting the police to arrest three people.

According to the boy’s mother, her son was accused of stealing Tk 85,000. “He was tortured for two days, from May 9 to 10. He is currently missing,” his mother alleged.

Police claimed to have arrested Tania, Mumtaz and Shamim in connection with the assault. The three were identified from the video.

Shawkat Anwar Islam, officer-in-charge of Galachipa Police Station, said, “We swung into action on a complaint from the boy’s mother. Efforts are on to arrest the other accused in the case.”