PBI finds no evidence against accused in Mohammadpur dog poisoning case, plaintiff set to challenge report

The Police Bureau of Investigation (PBI) has reported that it found no evidence against six individuals, including Abdus Salam, president of Japan Garden City Housing in Mohammadpur, Dhaka, over the poisoning of 10 dogs and one cat.

PBI Sub-Inspector (Unarmed) Md Ershad Hossain, the investigating officer of the case, recently submitted the report to the court.

Following the submission, the plaintiff, Rakibul Haque Amil, said he will file a Naraji (no-confidence) petition against the report.

On 5 January this year, animal rights activist Rakibul Amil filed the case on behalf of four animal rights organisations — People for Animal Welfare (PAW) Foundation, Stella Animal Welfare Foundation, Obhoyaronno - Bangladesh Animal Welfare Foundation, and Deep Ecology and Snake Conservation Foundation — against six people, including Abdus Salam, in the Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Court.

On the same day, the court recorded the plaintiff's statement and directed the PBI to investigate the allegations.

After completing the probe, the investigating officer submitted the report on 30 November, stating that the offences under Sections 428 and 506 of the Penal Code, 1860, against the six accused were not proved.

The court later fixed 21 December for a hearing on whether to accept the investigation report.

On that day, the plaintiff sought more time, saying a Naraji petition would be filed.

Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Sarah Farzana Haq granted the prayer and set 29 January next year as the next hearing date.

When contacted, PBI Sub-Inspector Md Ershad Hossain told TBS that he had submitted the report earlier and could not recall the details without reviewing the case documents.

"I am on leave. It would not be right to say anything without looking at the papers. I cannot comment further on this," he said when asked why no accused were identified in the report.

Plaintiff Rakibul Amil, PAW Foundation founding chairman, told TBS that they would file a Naraji petition challenging the report.

"The animals were killed by poisoning. Someone must have done it, and it is the responsibility of the investigating agency to find them," he said.

He also claimed that Japan Garden City Housing is a largely restricted area and said it was not believable that outsiders could have committed the act.

"If a company commits a crime, the responsibility falls on the owner. The housing committee cannot evade responsibility for the deaths of these dogs and cats," he added, seeking justice so that such incidents do not happen again.

The other accused in the case are Mohammad Shah Noor Bhuiyan, secretary of Japan Garden City; senior vice-president Mobarak Akter Md Yahya Khandaker; joint general secretary Md Arifur Rahman; organising secretary Md Shah Alam Bhuiyan; and youth and sports secretary Md Kajal Anwar.

According to the investigation report, the defendants, after being elected to the central committee of the Japan Garden City Residential Area Flat Owners' Welfare Association, took initiatives to make the area free of stray and pet animals, including dogs and cats.

The report says the coordinators of the animal welfare organisations resisted these efforts. It adds that, in the interest of animal and human welfare, local volunteers, with support from the organisations, sterilised and vaccinated the dogs in the area.

Despite this, the report states that incidents of cruelty towards stray and pet animals did not decrease. It claims that on 22 November 2024 at about 9pm, unknown person or persons poisoned food at the scene, leading to the deaths of three dogs and one cat.

The report further says that after learning of the incident, members of the plaintiff's side went to the scene and questioned the defendants, during which an altercation took place. However, it notes that no incident of threatening the lives of the plaintiff's side or witnesses occurred.

It also mentions that plaintiff Rakibul Amil was not present at the scene that day. He went there the following day and spoke to the defendants, but no threat to his life was made, according to the report.

The investigation report states that inquest and post-mortem reports, along with forensic examination of the viscera, indicated that the dogs and the cat appeared to have died from organophosphorus compounds, a type of pesticide poison.

However, it says no eyewitnesses or other testimonial evidence were found to show that the accused fed poison mixed with food to the animals.

It further states that no testimonial evidence was found to support the allegation that the defendants threatened to kill the plaintiff or witnesses when they were questioned about the deaths of 10 dogs and one cat and the alleged concealment of the bodies of seven dogs.

The report adds that although organophosphorus compounds were detected in the chemical examination, no eyewitnesses, video footage or other evidence could link the accused to feeding the poison.

Therefore, it concludes that the offences under Sections 428 and 506 of the Penal Code, 1860, have not been proven against the defendants.

Lawyer for the plaintiff, Zakir Hossain, told TBS that the investigating officer had submitted the report on 30 November stating that the allegations were not proven.

"We will file a Naraji against this report. The date for the hearing in this regard is fixed for 29 January. I hope these mute animals will receive their justice," he said.

According to the allegations in the case, the president and secretary of Japan Garden City, along with the other accused, planned to kill the dogs and cats in the area and mixed poison with their food at about 9pm on 22 November 2024.

The case states that after consuming the poisoned food, the animals ran around in distress and began bleeding and vomiting, and that 10 dogs and one cat later died.

It also states that when the plaintiff went to talk to the accused regarding the killing of the animals, the accused threatened to kill him as well.

In connection with the incident, Rakibul Amil filed the case on behalf of four animal rights organisations against six people, including Japan Garden City president Abdus Salam.