Sagar-Runi murder case report in court

A Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) officer investigating the murder of journalist couple Sagar Sarowar and Meherun Nahar Runi has informed the court of the progress in the probe.

ASP Jafar Ullah of RAB turned up to the High Court on Monday and informed the bench of Justice Naima Haider and Justice Zafar Ahmed of the progress.

The bench received the report and said the report would not be published since it was a sub-judice matter.

The bench also did not grant bail pleas of three accused in the murder case.

ASP Jafar Ullah went to the High Court on Mar 5 but the bench of Justice Md Shawkat Hossain and Justice Mustafa Zaman Islam dropped the matter from its cause list as it was ‘not authorised’ to hear it.

File Photo

In 2012, Maasranga Television News Editor Sagar Sarowar and ATN Bangla Senior Reporter Meherun Runi were stabbed to death in the bedroom of their apartment in Dhaka's Razabazaar area.

After police failed to achieve a breakthrough in the case, the High Court asked the RAB to take over the probe on Apr 18, 2012.

On Feb 18, the bench of Justice M Enayetur Rahim and Justice Mohammad Ullah summoned the investigating officer after three suspects in the case filed bail petitions.

The RAB sent DNA samples of 16 suspects to the US along with a knife and some clothes as evidence from the spot of crime.

But the killers could not be identified yet.

In October 2013, then Home Minister MK Alamgir said eight killers had been identified and seven of them had already been arrested.

Neither journalists nor the families of the victims found the version credible as five of them were accused in the murder of Dr Nitai Chandra Dey, a leader of a doctors’ group.

RAB now says none of the killers have been conclusively identified.