Barsha, Mahir planned JnU student Jobayed's murder a month ago: Police
After being stabbed, Jobayed Hossain pleaded with Barsha for help at one point, but she did not assist him, police say.
Highlights:
- Police say murder planning began in September
- Obtained information from Mahir and Barsha during interrogation
- Barsha was reportedly involved with both Mahir and Jobayed, leading to a 'love triangle'
- After being stabbed, Jobayed ran upstairs knocking on several doors for help, but no one opened
- On second floor, he pleaded with Barsha for help, but she did not assist him
Barjis Shabnam Barsha and Mahir Rahman, who had known each other for years and had been in a romantic relationship for the past year and a half, planned the murder of Jagannath University student Md Jobayed Hossain in September, police have said.
Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) Additional Commissioner (Crime and Operations) SN Mohammad Nazrul Islam disclosed the information during a press briefing at the DMP Media Centre this afternoon (21 October).
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Police reportedly gleaned the information from the arrested suspects, Mahir and Barsha, during interrogation.
Jobayed's blood-stained body was recovered from the staircase of a house in Armanitola on 19 October.
According to police, while still involved with Mahir, Barsha began a new relationship with Jobayed. Mahir learned about this last month, after which the pair allegedly began planning Jobayed's murder on 26 September.
Nazrul said, "Barsha developed a romantic relationship with Jobayed while he was tutoring her, though she had already been involved with Mahir. This was essentially a love triangle."
While Bangshal police had previously stated that Barsha and Mahir had been together for nine years, the DMP official said their relationship was one and a half years old.
According to police, Barsha told Mahir that she could not be with him unless Jobayed was "removed." The two then conspired to kill Jobayed. During interrogation, the arrested suspects—Mahir and Barsha—reportedly confessed to the plan.
The DMP additional commissioner said Barsha had told Mahir that she could not be with him unless Jobayed was "removed."
The plan to kill him had then been hatched, he said.
According to police, Barsha informed Mahir that Jobayed would come for tutoring around 4pm on the day of the murder, as part of the plan. Mahir and his friend Aylan waited in a nearby alley, and when Jobayed arrived, a heated argument broke out, and then Mahir stabbed Jobayed in the neck, causing fatal bleeding.
Then, DMP Deputy Commissioner (Lalbagh Division) Mallik Ahsan Uddin said, after being stabbed, Jobayed ran upstairs seeking help, knocking on several doors, but no one opened.
"On the second floor, he pleaded with Barsha for help, but she did not assist him," he added.
Meanwhile, regarding reports that Mahir's mother had turned her son in, Nazrul clarified that police had applied tactical pressure on the family, adding that it had not been a voluntary act. "This was part of the police's strategy."
Case filed
A case was finally filed accusing three individuals in connection with the murder of Jobayed, two days after the recovery of his body.
Enayet Hossain Saikat, elder brother of the victim Jobayed, a Chhatra Dal leader, filed the case at Bangshal Police Station this morning (21 October), DMP Lalbagh Division Deputy Commissioner (DC) Mallik Ahsan Uddin Sami confirmed.
Police later in the day filed a request to record the statements of three individuals, including Barsha, in connection with the murder.
The case's investigation officer, Sub-Inspector Md Ashraf Hossain, submitted the request.
Body recovery
Jobayed's body was recovered from the staircase of a house on Panir Pump Goli on 19 October, said Rafiqul Islam, officer-in-charge of Bangshal Police Station.
The body was later sent to the Dhaka Medical College Hospital morgue for autopsy.
Jobayed was a student of the statistics department (Session 2019-20) and a member of the JnU Chhatra Dal convening committee.
Delay in case filing
"We wanted to file the case naming five people: the student Barsha, her parents, her boyfriend Md Mahir Rahman and the boyfriend's friend Md Nafis. The OC of Bangshal Police Station refused to register it," Jobayed's brother Saikat said at the time.
He alleged, "The OC advised us not to name so many people in the case. He told us that if we named the girl's parents, the case would become 'lightweight.' But we insist on naming them. We demand justice for my brother's murder."
When asked, Bangshal Police Station OC Rafiqul Islam stated, "We will accept the case with the names of whoever they want to include, but we advised them to discuss the matter with university teachers before making a final decision."
Notably, CCTV footage reportedly shows two young men fleeing the scene around the time of the murder, though their faces are unclear.
For the past year, Jobayed had been teaching Barsha physics, chemistry and biology at a house called Roushan Villa on Nurbox Lane, Armanitola, Old Dhaka.
After the murder, police earlier took Barsha into custody for questioning.
She was escorted from her residence at around 11pm on Sunday night following extensive interrogation.
Following the murder, JnU students demanded the swift arrest of the perpetrators, holding a sit-in in front of Bangshal Police Station and blocking the Tatibazar intersection.
JnU yesterday announced a two-day mourning to honour the deceased.
