A young homemaker was killed and another woman from the same household was seriously injured after armed robbers reportedly broke into a family home in Chandpur’s Shahrasti upazila during the early hours of Tuesday night, leaving the local community in shock and prompting a major police investigation.
The incident took place at around 2:30 am in Bepari Bari, Battala village, Ward No. 9 of Shahrasti Municipality. The victim, Regan Akter Mim, 26, was the daughter-in-law of the late Selim Bepari. She was the mother of a two-and-a-half-year-old daughter, Saifa, and a four-month-old son, Siraj. Her husband, Rony, works in Dhaka and was away from home when the attack occurred.
According to family members, only two homemakers, an elderly relative, Nurul Islam, and three young children were inside the house at the time.
The injured woman, Sumaiya Akter, 24, recounted the terrifying ordeal from her hospital bed. She said she had gone to sleep around midnight with her three-month-old baby. During the night, two masked intruders entered her room, threatened her and her infant with knives, and demanded gold ornaments and other valuables.
She told the attackers they could take the jewellery stored in the wardrobe. Instead, they tied her hands with her scarf before striking her twice on the head with a hammer. The robbers allegedly stole the earrings she was wearing, another pair of earrings kept in the wardrobe, and a ring before moving into the adjacent room.
Bound and injured, Sumaiya said she could hear the desperate cries of her sister-in-law from the next room but was powerless to help.
Nurul Islam, the family’s elderly member, said he had locked the iron entrance gate before going to bed, leaving the key on a table inside the house. He woke after hearing screams and rushed towards the gate. Although it appeared to be secured from inside, the padlock was missing. It was later found outside the property in an undamaged condition, raising questions about how the attackers gained access and escaped.
Neighbour Anwar Hossain said he rushed to the house after hearing frantic screams from Mim’s room. He heard sounds of a struggle inside but received no response when he called through the window. Suspecting a robbery, he alerted other residents, and an announcement was made over the local mosque’s loudspeaker warning villagers about the apparent break-in.
Residents quickly surrounded the property and noticed that a window on the eastern side of the house was open. Looking inside, they saw Mim lying motionless on the floor. After the family elder opened the gate, neighbours entered the house and found Sumaiya tied up and crying.
They then discovered Mim unconscious in another room with a scarf tightly wrapped around her neck. Villagers removed the scarf and attempted to revive her, but she showed no signs of life. A doctor later examined her and confirmed that she had died.
The victim’s parents, siblings and other relatives rushed to the scene after receiving the news. Their emotional cries while embracing Mim’s two young children cast a sombre atmosphere over the village, where neighbours gathered in grief and disbelief.
Police officers, including Shahrasti Police Station Officer-in-Charge Mir Mahbubur Rahman and Senior Assistant Superintendent of Police (Kachua Circle) Md Abdul Hai Chowdhury, visited the scene shortly after the incident.
Investigators collected evidence from the house, while preparations were made to send the body to Chandpur Sadar Hospital for a post-mortem examination. The forensic findings are expected to help determine the precise cause of death and support the ongoing investigation.
Officer-in-Charge Mir Mahbubur Rahman said the case was being treated with the utmost seriousness. He stated that investigators were working to establish the full sequence of events, identify everyone involved, and bring the perpetrators to justice.
Senior Assistant Superintendent of Police Abdul Hai Chowdhury also confirmed that multiple police teams had been assigned to the investigation. He said officers were pursuing every available lead and expressed confidence that those responsible would be identified and arrested as quickly as possible.
The fatal attack has sparked widespread concern among local residents, many of whom are calling for stronger night-time security measures to prevent similar crimes and ensure the safety of families in the area.
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