How police cracked Mohammadpur double murder case based on burn scar, theft record, and Geneva Camp link
Police confirmed that Ayesha confessed to the killings during initial interrogation, and her habit of theft was revealed when her mother told the police that Ayesha had previously stolen Tk2 lakh and four bhoris of gold ornaments from her own sister's house.
The Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) have arrested the prime suspect in the brutal murder of a mother and daughter in Mohammadpur, confirming that the housemaid, Mosammat Ayesha, was identified using a unique burn scar on her neck and records from a previous theft she was involved in.
The victim's husband, AJM Azizul Islam, filed a murder case against Ayesha immediately after discovering the bodies.
The accused domestic worker was arrested along with her husband, Rabbi, yesterday (10 December) afternoon during a raid at her father-in-law's house in Charkoya village, Nalchhiti Police Station, Jhalakathi district. Police also recovered a stolen laptop from their possession.
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Investigation faced blind alleys
Briefing reporters at the DMP Media Centre today (11 December), Additional Police Commissioner (Crime and Operations) SN Md Nurul Islam detailed the challenges of the investigation.
The victim, homemaker Laila Afroze 48, and her daughter, Nafisa Lawal Binte Aziz, 15, were stabbed to death in their Shahjahan Road apartment in Mohammadpur on Monday (8 December).
The housemaid, Ayesha, had been hired only three days before the crime and did not use a mobile phone. Furthermore, she wore a burqa while entering and leaving the apartment, and CCTV footage only showed her eyes and feet, making visual identification impossible.
Nurul Islam stated, "The investigative team could not find any significant clues from the usual methods. We then decided to review police records of thefts by housemaids over the last year in Mohammadpur Police Station area, specifically looking for similarities with the suspect's profile: having a burn mark on the neck and staying near the Geneva Camp area."
Breakthrough from an old case
This non-conventional method led the police to a theft incident from July of the same year in the Humayun Road area. The maid in that case, also named Ayesha, had stolen Tk8,000 cash and a gold ring, and she too had a burn scar on her neck.
The victim family from the old case provided a phone number that the maid had used to contact them briefly. Analysing the Call Detail Records (CDR) of this number led police to an individual in Hemayetpur, Savar, where the owner of the SIM card claimed that his phone was sent to a person named Rabbi. Later, the policemen got to know that Rabbi's wife's name is Ayesha.
It was then revealed that Rabbi and Ayesha, who works as a housemaid, had previously lived near Geneva Camp. This confirmed the killer's identity within 24 hours of the murder.
The confession
Nurul Islam confirmed that Ayesha confessed to the killings during the initial interrogation. Her habit of theft was revealed when her mother told the police that Ayesha had previously stolen Tk2 lakh and four bhoris of gold ornaments from her own sister's house.
The police official detailed the sequence of the crime:
- Ayesha, who had stolen Tk2,000 on her second day, returned on the fourth day carrying a switchblade knife.
- Laila Afroze confronted Ayesha again about the missing money and threatened to call her husband, AJM Azizul Islam, a teacher at Sunbeams School.
- Fearing police action, Ayesha immediately pulled out the switchblade and attacked Laila Afroze to stop her from making the call.
- Ayesha repeatedly stabbed Laila Afroze until she collapsed. Hearing the commotion, the daughter, Nafisa, who was sleeping, rushed out.
- Nafisa was also severely stabbed while trying to save her mother. Nafisa attempted to call the security guard via the intercom, but Ayesha tore the main cable, leading to both mother and daughter bleeding out from excessive stab wounds.
After sustaining minor injuries herself, Ayesha quickly changed her blood-stained clothes in the washroom, put on Nafisa's school uniform, and placed the two knives in a bucket. She then packed a laptop, phone, and other stolen valuables in a backpack before fleeing the apartment. She later discarded the bloody clothes at Sir Salimullah Medical College and Hospital, and the stolen phone from a bridge in Singair.
Remand granted
Following the arrest, a Dhaka court today granted a six-day remand for Mosammat Ayesha and a three-day remand for her husband, Rabbi, to allow the investigating officer to conduct further interrogation into the double murder.
