A tribunal in Cumilla has handed down the death penalty to a faith healer following the brutal murder of a Cumilla University student and her mother inside their residence.
On Wednesday, 11 November, Judge Yasir Arafat of the Cumilla Women and Children Repression Prevention Tribunal delivered the verdict in a crowded courtroom. The court also imposed a fine of Tk 3 lakh on the convict, Mobarak Hossain. The decision was confirmed by Abdul Motaleb Majumder, the Assistant Public Prosecutor of the tribunal.
The convict, Mobarak Hossain, is the son of the late Abdul Jalil from Kabilpur village in the Debidwar upazila of Cumilla. Prior to his arrest, he resided in the Bagichagaon neighbourhood of Cumilla city. Alongside his practice as a traditional healer offering faith-healing rituals and exorcisms, Mobarak served as a caretaker at the Babus Salam Jame Mosque in the city.
The tragic incident unfolded on 8 September 2025, when police recovered the bodies of Sumaiya Afrin and her mother, Tahmina Begum, from their rented apartment in the Kaliyajuri area of Cumilla city. Sumaiya was an undergraduate student in the Department of Public Administration at Cumilla University, belonging to the 2021–22 academic session. The double homicide sent shockwaves through the university campus and the local community, sparking widespread demands for swift justice.
Law enforcement authorities acted rapidly following the discovery of the crime scene. Mobarak was apprehended on the same day during a targeted police raid. The following evening, he was produced before the No. 1 Cognisance Court in Cumilla, where he rendered a detailed confession under Section 164 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, admitting his direct involvement in the dual killings. The court subsequently ordered his remanded detention in prison pending trial.
During police interrogations and in his judicial confession, Mobarak revealed the motives behind the crime. His association with the family had begun through his faith-healing services, and he had been visiting their residence regularly for about a month prior to the attack. On the day of the incident, while attempting to sexually assault Sumaiya under the pretext of conducting a healing session, her mother intervened. To silence her, Mobarak choked Tahmina Begum to death. Shortly afterwards, he asphyxiated Sumaiya to cover up the initial crime.
