Rangpur 4 murder: Dope tests of two accused show no trace of drugs

Dope tests of Siddhartha Das and Mugdha Das, who were arrested in connection with the murder of four members of a family in Rangpur, have found no trace of drugs in their bodies, reports Prothom Alo.

Their urine samples were collected inside Rangpur Central Jail yesterday (30 August), eight days after the murders, and tested at Rangpur Medical College Hospital.

The Rangpur Metropolitan Detective Branch (DB) received the test reports this afternoon (31 August).

Deputy Commissioner of Police of Rangpur Metropolitan DB Sanatan Chakraborty told Prothom Alo that the reports were received around 2:30pm and showed no presence of drugs in the two accused.

He said the samples were tested eight days after the incident and that traces of drugs may no longer be detectable in urine after such a period. 

According to him, the substances could have been detected if the tests had been conducted within two or three days of the incident.

Sanatan said the hospital conducts dope tests using urine samples and does not have facilities to test hair or blood samples.

Police had earlier said Siddhartha and Mugdha had consumed drugs before allegedly killing the four members of the family. In their statements to the court, the two also reportedly said they had taken eight to nine Yaba tablets before the murders.

Asked whether the negative dope test contradicted their statements, Sanatan said, "The investigation is still ongoing. We are not sitting idle. Necessary steps will be taken subsequently."

Yesterday, members of the Rangpur DB went to Rangpur Central Jail with a technologist from Rangpur Medical College Hospital to collect the urine samples.

Police said the samples were collected inside the jail because taking the accused outside could have created a risk of attack or mob violence.

On the night of 22 August, police recovered the bodies of Ganapati Chakraborty, a retired teacher of Rangpur Zilla School, his wife and their two children from their home in the Machhuapara area of Rangpur city.

Ganapati's elder brother Gopinath Chakraborty filed a murder case against unidentified assailants with Rangpur Metropolitan Police's Kotwali Police Station on the afternoon of 23 August.

Siddhartha and Mugdha, who were neighbours of the family, were arrested the following day.

Police said they later gave confessional statements before the Rangpur Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Court under Section 164 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, before being sent to jail.

According to police, the four were killed following an altercation over opposition to drug consumption.