US police say college student Zinat’s death was a suicide. Her family disagrees
New York Correspondent, bdnews24.com
Published: 15 May 2022 01:59 PM BdST Updated: 15 May 2022 01:59 PM BdST
US police have labelled the death of Zinat Hossain, a college student of Bangladeshi descent, in an incident on a New York train line a suicide. But her family and the Bangladeshi expatriate community disagree.
On Saturday afternoon, before funeral prayers for Zinat at the Baitul Jannah Mosque in Brooklyn, her grandfather Md Kabir said:
“The police report says Zinat committed suicide, but we don’t believe it.”
“They said she ‘died due to the fall’. But in actuality, this was a ‘hate crime’. Our community must unite in protest against this.”
Zinat, the only daughter of Amir Hossain and Jasmine Hossain, was a student at New York’s Hunter College. The family are natives of Cumilla’s Daudkandi Upazila.
Police recovered the body of the 23-year-old from underneath a train at the 55th Street Station on Wednesday night. She died on her way home from classes.
After her death, a video of another incident from Oct 24, 2019, began spreading on social media, with people claiming it was footage of Zinat’s death. The video – which showed muggers snatching a bag from a person before pushing them onto the train tracks – was mistakenly used by some media outlets in their reporting on the college student’s death.
Zinat lived with her mother and father at New York’s 42nd Street and 8th Avenue.
The family had immigrated to the US in 2015. Zinat’s only brother, Abid Hossain, is completing his post-graduate studies at Dhaka’s Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University.

As Zinat’s coffin was taken from the mosque after the service, her mother Jasmine Hossain, who was sitting in a wheelchair, broke down in tears. The air was heavy with grief.
Zinat was later buried in New Jersey.
Zinat’s uncle, Dr Enamul Haque of the US Bangamata Council, said the family would hold a rally and a press conference to highlight the ‘truth’ and protest ‘the police cover-up’.
An organisation called the ‘South Asian American Fund for Education and Training’ has also called a demonstration in front of the New York City mayor’s office at City Hall over Zinat’s death.
Majeda Uddin, the chief executive of the organisation, has called on expatriates to take part in the protest to demand an investigation into the cause of Zinat’s death and public safety.
-
‘Missing’ Hilaly found in Savar
-
KNF killed innocents in June: PCJSS
-
Motorcycles banned from highways during Eid
-
Lawyer defends ‘Tk 120m fees’ for Grameen Telecom cases
-
Plans for 400,000 tonnes of rice import approved
-
Bangladesh raises LPG prices
-
Motorcycles on Padma Bridge unlikely before Eid: official
-
2 children drown in Netrokona floodwaters
-
Amin Hilaly, ‘missing’ real estate businessman named in NSU graft case, is found in Savar
-
A new insurgent group blamed PCJSS for a triple killing in June. PCJSS, in response, blames the new group
-
Bangladesh bans motorcycles from highways for a week during Eid-ul-Azha
-
Lawyer defends ‘Tk 120m fees’ taken for settlement of Grameen Telecom cases
-
Bangladesh approves plans to import 400,000 tonnes of rice after duty cuts
-
Bangladesh raises LPG prices as taka weakens against dollar
Most Read
- Bangladesh is gearing up to open its first river tunnel by the end of 2022
- Bangladesh to celebrate Eid-ul-Azha on Jul 10
- Drastic fall in passenger numbers forces owners to cut Dhaka-Barishal launch fares
- Nigerian Islamic court orders death by stoning for men convicted of homosexuality
- War crimes fugitive Aminul Haque took several trips to Pakistan, RAB says
- Daylong chaos as expressway tolling slows traffic
- RFL Electronics gets $23m in British loans to boost manufacturing
- Bangladesh unlikely to reopen Padma Bridge to motorcycles before Eid: official
- A suspect was let off after a mix-up over his name. Then he was arrested at his wedding
- Bangladesh’s exports climb to record $52bn in FY22