Police recovered the body of a six-year-old girl from a sack inside a house in Bogura’s Adamdighi upazila last night, hours after she went missing while returning home from private tuition.
Police have arrested four people in connection with the incident.
The arrestees are the victim’s neighbour Amjad Hossain, 40; his wife, Mosammat Bonna, 35; Amjad’s friend Md Babu, 28; and Babu’s wife, Asha, 25.
According to police, the prime accused, Amjad, occasionally works as a day labourer.
The deceased, Rakika Akter Raka, 6, was the daughter of Md Raihan Uddin Pramanik from the Malshan Sahebpara area of Santahar municipality. Raka was a nursery student at a local madrasa.
Police said the victim's father filed an abduction and murder case at the Adamdighi Police Station this morning.
According to the case statement, Raka left home around 4:30 pm on Thursday for private tuition. When she did not return home, her family members grew anxious.
Later, her father, grandmother, aunt, and other relatives started looking for her.
Failing to find Raka despite extensive searches, the family members reported the matter to the Santahar police outpost. Her father was then sent to Adamdighi Police Station to file a general diary.
Md Asif Hossain, assistant superintendent of police (Adamdighi Circle) in Bogura, told The Daily Star, "At around 10:30 pm yesterday, the family received information that Raka's body was found inside a white plastic sack in Amjad Hossain's house in the Sahebpara area of Santahar municipality. As the news spread, locals held Amjad and his wife Bonna, and beat them up."
"Upon receiving the news, police from Adamdighi and Santahar rushed to the spot, rescued Amjad, Bonna, and Amjad's friend Babu from the agitated people, and took them into custody. Amjad and his wife were admitted to Naogaon Sadar Hospital as they were injured," the ASP added.
When asked about the motive behind the murder, ASP Asif said, "The child was wearing a pair of gold earrings. They were missing when the body was recovered. We primarily suspect that the child was killed for those gold earrings."
Inspector Shahidul Islam, investigating officer of the case, told The Daily Star, "There is an injury mark on the left side of the victim's head. Furthermore, a rope was wrapped around her neck. She was strangled to death."
“Since the prime accused are currently in the hospital, it has not been possible to interrogate them yet,” said the inspector.
“The third accused, Babu, was sent to jail through the court today. The fourth accused, Babu’s wife Asha, was arrested this afternoon and will be produced before the court tomorrow,” he added.
The child’s body has been handed over to the family following a post-mortem, police said.
