Accused 'slept after murder, chopped body next day' in Phulbaria killing

Police have arrested two individuals in connection with the murder of Customs sepoy Abu Rayhan Talukdar in Phulbaria, Mymensingh. The arrestees are Raju, who was in charge of looking after the victim's house, and his friend Jitul. They were arrested from Srimangal in Moulvibazar on Tuesday night, nearly a month after the murder.

Assistant Police Superintendent SM Hasan Israfeel confirmed the information on Wednesday. Police said Raju confessed to the murder during interrogation.

According to police, Raju killed Rayhan on the night of July 24 following an argument over money. After the killing, he slept in the same house. The next day, after waking up, he chopped up the body. He then packed the remains into four travel bags and called his friend Jitul. The two then dumped the bags in the jungle beside the house.

The victim, Abu Rayhan Talukdar (45), son of the late Abu Siddique of Swaityapur village in Enayetpur union under Phulbaria upazila, was employed as a sepoy at the Customs, Excise and VAT department in the capital's Kamalapur.

Relatives said Rayhan and his elder brother Nurul Islam lived in adjacent houses in Swaityapur village. Rayhan's house was usually empty. He would stay there when he came from Dhaka. Raju was in charge of looking after the house.

Nurul Islam, the victim's brother, said Rayhan had come home on the night of July 23. He was supposed to return to his workplace in Dhaka two days later. But when he did not return on the scheduled date, colleagues called the house to inquire. It was then that relatives realised Rayhan was missing. His mobile phone was also found switched off.

The next day, Nurul Islam filed a general diary with Phulbaria Police Station. During a search of the surrounding area on August 2, police found four travel bags in the jungle beside the house. Upon opening the bags, severed body parts were recovered. Relatives later identified them as Rayhan's.

During the initial investigation, police learned that after the general diary was filed, the house caretaker Raju and his friend Jitul had gone missing. Subsequently, on August 4, the victim's brother filed a murder case against them with Phulbaria Police Station.

Police claimed Raju confessed to the murder during interrogation. Based on his information, raids recovered several pieces of evidence from the jungle, including the machete, knife, iron rod, and blood-stained panjabi used in the killing.

Assistant Police Superintendent SM Hasan Israfeel said a press conference would be held on Thursday to provide details on the motive and other aspects of the incident.