A woman was shot dead 3 decades ago. Police crack the forgotten case now

Police say they have cracked the Sagira Morshed Salam murder case, three decades after the incident on Baily Road in Dhaka.

The law enforcement arrested Hasan Ali Chowdhury, 70, the brother of Sagira’s husband Salam Chowdhury, Hasan’s wife Sayedatul Mahmuda Shaheen, 64, Shaheen’s brother Anas Mahmud Rezwan, 59, and Md Maruf Reza, 59, in connection with the murder.

Hasan Ali Chowdhury

Sayedatul Mahmuda Shaheen

In statements to court, all of them have confessed to their roles in the killing, police say.

Banaj Kumar Majumder, deputy inspector general of police and chief of the Police Bureau of Investigation, briefed the media on the development on Thursday citing the statements of the four arrestees. 

Hasan hired Maruf, a local hooligan, to “teach Sagira a lesson” over a family dispute stemming from jealousy. Hasan’s wife Shaheen who wanted to wreak vengeance on Sagira instigated her family members to go after her. Hasan, a physician, also deployed Rezwan in aid of Maruf, the DIG said.

Sagira was working as a researcher at the Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies after achieving a post-graduate degree in economics from the Dhaka University.

Anas Mahmud Rezwan

Maruf Reza

On Jul 25, 1989, Sagira was going to pick her daughter from Viqarunnisa Noon School by rickshaw. Two people on a motorcycle waylaid and shot her in a bid to snatch her gold bangles. She died on her way to hospital.

Citing the statement of the rickshaw-puller, Banaj said Maruf shot Sagira after she identified Rezwan.

Maruf is a nephew of retired Maj Gen Mahmudul Hasan, the then home minister of the Jatiya Party government led by HM Ershad.

Banaj said the rickshaw-puller’s statement played a key role in identifying and arresting Rezwan on Nov 10 in Dhaka’s Rampura after the High Court lifted a stay order on the case and ordered the PBI on June 26 this year to complete further investigations in 60 days.

Rezwan then admitted to giving Maruf Tk 25,000 to execute the plan to “teach Sagira a lesson on instructions from Rezwan’s sister Shaheen and brother-in-law Hasan”.

Hasan and Shaheen were arrested on Nov 12 at Dhanmondi and Maruf at his home on Bailey Road the following day. The couple gave the statements in court on Wednesday and Rezwan and Maruf on Thursday.