Italian aid worker Cesare Tavella was shot thrice from close range, says forensic expert

Italian national Cesare Tavella, who was murdered in Dhaka a day ago, was shot three times from behind at close range, says the forensic expert who conducted the autopsy.

Staff Correspondentbdnews24.com
Published : 29 Sept 2015, 10:21 AM
Updated : 29 Sept 2015, 04:04 PM

“One bullet hit his left hand. It was a through and through gunshot. He was also shot twice on his back. One of those bullets pierced through his chest,” said Qazi Md Abu Shama on Tuesday.

Briefing reporters at the Dhaka Medical College and Hospital mortuary, the forensic department’s assistant professor said they removed the third bullet that was stuck in Tavella’s body during autopsy.

“He was shot from close range. It appears that these bullets were fired from a revolver,” Abu Shama added.

Tavella, 50, was gunned down on Monday evening at Gulshan-2’s Road 90, the heart of the capital’s diplomatic enclave, amid several countries’ security concerns.

He worked as the project manager at the Netherlands-based NGO ICCO Cooperation’s Profitable Opportunities for Food Security (PROOFS) programme.

One of the witnesses, rickshaw mechanic Md Joynal said he saw three assailants fleeing on a motorcycle. One of them was wielding a gun.

Jihadist threat monitoring portal SITE Intelligence Group later on Monday night said the Islamic State had claimed responsibility for the murder.

The Bangladesh government is, however, yet to confirm that as Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal on Tuesday said the murder was an ‘isolated incident’.

Cesare Tavella

The Italian national’s murder took place only two days after the Australian cricket team decided to delay its tour to Bangladesh after their government warned of possible militant attacks on ‘Australian interests’.                         

After Australia, the UK and the US both claimed to have received information that militants might target their interests in Bangladesh and advised their citizens to limit their movements in the country.​