Police say husband confessed to murdering doctor at Dhaka hotel

Police found the body of 27-year-old Jannatul Naim Siddique at a hotel in Panthapath last week

Rezaul Karim, the husband of the doctor Jannatul Naim Siddique, has confessed to killing her at a hotel in Dhaka’s Panthapath, police say.

The 31-year-old suspect made a confessional statement before the Chief Metropolitan Magistrates’ Court on Saturday, said Delwar Hossain, an employee at Dhaka Metropolitan Police’s prosecution department.

Abu Zafar Mohammad Mahfuzul Kabir, an inspector at Kalabagan Police Station who is investigating the case, took Rezaul to court after the suspect agreed to give the statement.

Metropolitan Magistrate Rashidul Alam sent Rezaul to jail after recording the statement. The statement, recorded under section 164 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, can be used as evidence in the trial.

Police found the throat-slashed body of 27-year-old Jannatul in Panthapath's 'Family Service Apartment’ on Aug 10. After completing her MBBS from the Dhaka Community Medical College, she was taking a gynaecology course at Dhaka Medical College Hospital.

After arresting Rezaul the following day, the Rapid Action Battalion said he had secretly married the victim two years ago after a relationship that started online in 2019.

The couple would stay at different hotels as their families did not know about their marriage, but their relationship became rocky after Jannatul discovered that Rezaul was having affairs with multiple women, according to the RAB.

Rezaul took her to the hotel on the pretext of celebrating his birthday, but they subsequently had an altercation which turned physical. He then stabbed the woman with a knife, which the RAB believes he had been carrying inside his bag with the motive of killing her.