20 days after vanishing from workplace, Kalabagan SI appears at Dhaka hospital

He had been living in various residential hotels across Dhaka since Apr 30

A sub-inspector of Dhaka's Kalabagan Police Station, who went missing nearly three weeks ago, has been found at a government hospital in the capital.

Rakibul Hasan Sarkar, 32, was located at the Government Employees Hospital near Gulistan in the early hours of Wednesday, 20 days after he mysteriously vanished from his workplace.

According to the police, Rakibul had been secretly living in various residential hotels across Dhaka during his period of disappearance.

Due to an irregular diet and severe physical exhaustion while in “hiding”, he fell ill and went to the hospital to seek medical care.

People at the hospital recognised the missing officer when he arrived for treatment and immediately alerted the local police station.

"We received information about his location near Gulistan around dawn and rescued him from the hospital," Kalabagan Police chief Fazle Ashik told bdnews24.com.

"He went there secretly for treatment because his health had severely deteriorated and he became weak due to a lack of proper food during his time missing."

Following his rescue, Rakibul was moved to the Central Police Hospital in Rajarbagh, where he is currently admitted for further medical attention.

Rakibul had been missing since April 30.

On that day, he left the Kalabagan Police Station building in civilian clothing and did not return or report for his scheduled duties. His mobile phone had remained switched off ever since, prompting authorities to file a general diary (GD) and launch a city-wide search.

While investigators have confirmed that he spent the last 20 days moving between low-profile residential hotels in Dhaka, the motive behind his sudden disappearance remains unclear.

"Once he recovers sufficiently, senior officials will interrogate him to understand why he chose to go into hiding and cut off all communications," Ashik said.