Court issues arrest warrants for 2 former army personnel in Tonu murder case

A court in Cumilla has issued arrest warrants against two former army personnel in the murder case of Sohagi Jahan Tonu, a student of Cumilla Victoria Government College.

The court also directed authorities to seek Interpol Red Notices against the two accused.

Cumilla Senior Judicial Magistrate-1 Muminul Hoque passed the order yesterday afternoon (8 June).

Earlier in the day, murder suspect Hafizur Rahman, a former warrant officer, appeared before the Cumilla Senior Judicial Magistrate's Court as part of a routine hearing in the case.

He was brought to court from prison and later taken back into custody, according to Cumilla Court Inspector Mohammad Mamunur Rashid.

The two former army personnel named in the arrest warrant are former sergeant Zahiduzzaman, also known as Zahid, and former soldier Shahin Alam.

At the time of the murder, Zahid was serving with the 12 Engineer Battalion at Cumilla Cantonment. He is from Garghata area of Morrelganj in Bagerhat and has since retired from the army.

Shahin, a former member of the 2 Signal Battalion at Cumilla Cantonment, is from Gobindapur village in Burichang upazila of Cumilla. A source said he is currently abroad. He is 37 years old and has also retired from military service.

On 22 April this year, the Police Bureau of Investigation (PBI) arrested Hafizur Rahman from his residence in Keraniganj. He was later produced before the court of Cumilla Senior Judicial Magistrate Muminul Hoque. The investigation officer in the case sought a seven-day remand, but the court granted a three-day remand. After the remand, on 25 April, the court ordered that he be sent to jail.

PBI Dhaka Inspector Tarikul Islam, the investigation officer in the case, said Hafizur was brought to court yesterday as part of the regular hearing process.

Tonu, a student of Victoria Government College and a theatre activist, went missing on the evening of 20 March 2016 while on her way to provide private tuition in the Cumilla Cantonment area. Her body was recovered the following day from a jungle near the cantonment power house.

Following the incident, Tonu's father filed a murder case with Kotwali Model Police Station against unidentified persons. The case was initially investigated by local police, the district Detective Branch (DB) and later the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), but none of the agencies could solve the mystery despite lengthy investigations.

On 21 October 2020, the CID transferred the case documents to the Police Bureau of Investigation (PBI) headquarters in Dhaka following instructions from Police Headquarters.

The case was investigated for nearly four years by PBI Inspector Md Mujibur Rahman. Since September 2024, Inspector Md Tarikul Islam has been serving as the sixth investigation officer.

Investigators found DNA belonging to three individuals on Tonu's clothing, but the samples remained unmatched for years.

On 6 April this year, the court summoned the investigation officer to explain the progress of the case and directed authorities to match the DNA profiles.

One of the individuals identified through the DNA evidence was Hafizur Rahman.