A 37-year-old fruit trader in Bogura was allegedly murdered by two friends following a dispute over money he had lent them, with police claiming that one of the suspects searched the internet for the name of a drug capable of rendering a person unconscious before the killing.
The victim, Wahed Hossain, also known as Nizhum, was identified after an unidentified, partially decomposed body was recovered from a paddy field in the Malgram Madhyapara Dighipar area of Bogura city on 12 August. His relatives later identified the body.
According to police, Wahed’s friends Nazim Uddin and Md Swapan allegedly planned the murder after he repeatedly asked them to repay money he had lent them. Nazim has since been arrested, while police are searching for Swapan.
Investigators said Wahed had taken a loan of Tk 7 lakh from a private organisation in his mother’s name some time earlier. From that money, he reportedly lent Tk 2 lakh to Swapan and Tk 1 lakh to Nazim. A dispute subsequently developed when Wahed sought repayment of the loans.
Police said Nazim told investigators during initial questioning that he and Swapan decided to kill Wahed because of the dispute. According to the account provided by police, they carried out the plan on 7 August by asking Wahed to come to the office of the private organisation in the Malgram area.
Once there, Nazim allegedly used his mobile phone to search the internet for the name of a drug that could make someone unconscious. Police said a sedative and poisonous substance were then mixed with a soft drink and given to Wahed. He subsequently died.
The suspects allegedly placed his body inside a sack and left it in a paddy field some distance from the office later that night. Police said Nazim and Swapan left their jobs voluntarily the following morning, on 8 August, and went into hiding.
Wahed’s disappearance prompted his family to file a general diary at the police station. Five days later, on 12 August, police recovered a sack containing a partially decomposed body from a paddy field in the Malgram Madhyapara Dighipar area. As the identity of the deceased could not initially be established, the body was buried as unidentified. His relatives later identified him as Wahed.
The investigation subsequently focused on Wahed’s mobile phone records. Police said analysis of the data revealed communications between Wahed and the two suspects. Investigators then used information technology to identify Nazim and Swapan and trace their movements.
Wahed had been running a fruit wholesale business with his father on Station Road in Bogura, while Nazim and Swapan worked as cooks at the private organisation. Their professional and personal association had brought them into close contact with Wahed, according to the case documents and police sources.
Following the discovery of the body and subsequent identification, Wahed’s brother Sohel Hossain filed a murder case at Bogura Sadar Police Station on Thursday, naming unidentified individuals as the accused. Police later arrested Nazim from Madnai village in Kahaloo upazila.
Nazim was produced before a court later that day. Police sought seven days’ remand for questioning, but Bogura Judicial Magistrate Md Ariful Islam granted five days’ remand.
Police said Nazim admitted during preliminary questioning to being involved in the killing. Investigators also allege that Swapan played a role in the murder and are continuing efforts to arrest him.
Bogura Sadar Police Station officer-in-charge Ibrahim Ali said investigators had identified Nazim and Swapan as suspects with the help of information technology. He said important information relating to the killing had been obtained following Nazim’s arrest.
The case investigator, Sub-Inspector Shariful Islam, said Nazim was being questioned during his five-day remand and that efforts were under way to locate and arrest Swapan.
Bogura Superintendent of Police Mirza Sayem Mahmud said Nazim had told investigators that he searched the internet for the name of a drug capable of rendering someone unconscious before the alleged murder. Police are continuing to investigate the substances allegedly used in the killing, the precise motive and Swapan’s role in the incident.
The investigation is therefore focused on establishing the full sequence of events surrounding Wahed’s death, as well as determining the respective roles of the two suspects. Police are expected to gather further evidence through Nazim’s questioning and the ongoing search for Swapan.
