Oprotim murder planned to snatch iPhone: Police

Police have claimed to have unravelled the main mystery behind the murder of 13-year-old Ishayat Shahriar Oprotim in the Sananda area of Lalmai Hills in Cumilla. Three people have been arrested in the incident and another has been taken into custody for interrogation. Superintendent of Police Md Anisuzzaman disclosed the matter at a press conference at the Cumilla District Superintendent of Police office on Sunday noon.

The three arrested are Saiful Islam Tuhin (19), a teenager Fahad (15) and Kamrul Hasan. Besides, police have detained another person named Siam (19), whose involvement is being verified through information and evidence.

The Superintendent of Police said all the accused are between 18 and 20 years of age, and Tuhin has prior allegations of various crimes, including motorcycle theft. The SP said Oprotim had a friendship and close association with these "senior" youths.

According to the police account, around 3:15pm last Friday, Tuhin took Oprotim along with him to a secluded forest surrounded by hills in the Sananda area of Lalmai Hills. Later, after Oprotim's body was recovered, police identified Tuhin, who was with him in CCTV footage, and took him into custody. During interrogation, Tuhin said he had planned to snatch the iPhone used by Oprotim and took him to the area after messaging him from home.

Police claimed that based on information provided by Tuhin, Fahad was taken into custody, and when Fahad revealed his friend Kamrul's involvement during interrogation, Kamrul was also taken into custody. The SP said that following Tuhin's directions, a raid was conducted at his house and the iPhone used by Oprotim was recovered.

According to the SP's account, between 5pm and 6pm on September 18, an attempt was made to snatch Oprotim's iPhone in that forest. When he resisted, a scuffle broke out between them. Then Tuhin first, and later Fahad and Kamrul, struck his head with a hard bamboo stick, causing Oprotim's death on the spot. Police said that after confirming his death, Tuhin left the scene with the phone along with Fahad and Kamrul. The SP described the killing as a "premeditated murder".

Police said the three arrested have been shown arrested in the Oprotim murder case, and it is being investigated with importance whether anyone else is involved. Police said a police report will be submitted to the court quickly after the investigation is completed.

The deceased Oprotim was the only child of Associate Professor Nahida Begum of the Bengali Department of Comilla University and businessman K M Firoz Shahriar. He went missing after leaving home on Friday afternoon. About 22 hours after he went missing, police recovered his body from the jungle of Lalmai Hills in Sananda village beside Comilla University.

Oprotim's first funeral was held at the central field of Comilla University around 10am on Sunday. There, Firoz Shahriar demanded a fair and just trial for his son's murder. He said, "I want a fair and just trial for my son's murder. I have full confidence in the current judicial system. May this confidence not break. I believe it will not break and justice will be served." After the first funeral, Oprotim's body was taken to the Gandhamati Eidgah ground in Kotbari, where he was buried at the local cemetery after a second funeral.

Speaking before the burial about the deep pain of losing his son, Firoz Shahriar said, "May no one else have to lose a child like I have. I understand today how painful it is for a father to carry his child's body on his shoulder." Recalling Oprotim's childhood memories, he said Oprotim came to this area at the age of two and, growing up with his university teacher mother, also received the affection and love of the locals. He was given a final farewell in the presence of the people of that area.