Rajshahi Medical College student held for ‘killing’ friend; dumped body recovered 18 days after murder
A bone-chilling story about how two would-be doctors murdered their friend has been revealed 18 days after the killing in Rajshahi Medical College.
Rapid Action Battalion personnel and police recovered the decomposed body of Mahbub Alam Russel, 24, behind a bush near Charu Mama’s canteen in the medical college. Russel was a student of the economics department of Rajshahi Government College and he also had an electronics business.
Rab arrested one of the suspected murderers, Jotirmoy Sarkar Joy, 25, a final-year student of RMC, at his relative’s house in Tarash of Sirajganj early yesterday. He confessed the killing to law enforcers and led them to where he and his cohort had hid Russel’s body.
During the recovery of the body around 4:00pm yesterday, law enforcers allowed him to speak to journalists and the incredible and gruesome story of the murder was told.
Joy, Russel and Sabbir Hossain, 26, another final-year student of RMC from Konabari in Gazipur, together started for Dhaka on Padma Express from Rajshahi Railway Station in the afternoon of April 4. Sabbir and Joy were supposed to return Tk 4.5 lakh they borrowed from Russel once they reached Sabbir’s home in Gazipur.
But the trio got off the train at Chatmohor Railway Station in Pabna and returned to Rajshahi by another train, Joy said. They took Russel behind Charu Mama’s canteen around 1:00am on April 5 and smoked pot together. Sabbir and Joy then treated Russel to a bottle of Phensidyl which had six sleeping pills mixed in it, Joy told reporters.
Joy said when Russel fell asleep, Sabbir pushed him an injection and uttered in English, “He is confirmed dead now”.
The injection was prepared with Bupi Vacain and Neosuxa which Sabbir and Joy had bought from a pharmacy in Rajshahi city on April 3.
After the killing, they spread bleaching powder and cement on Russel’s body. Sabbir had kept the powder and cement at the scene beforehand. The powder and cement was spread so that the rotting body does not smell, Joy said.
Then they wrapped the body with cloth and polythene and buried it behind the bush. They even planted some arum plants on the spot for good measure, Joy said.
Russel and Joy were friends since their HSC times. They passed the HSC examination from Dayarampur Cantonment Supper College of Natore in 2005, said law enforcers and the victim’s family members.
Joy got into RMC while Russel enrolled in the Rajshahi college. Russel was introduced to Sabbir through Joy.
Russel was the son of retired BDR personnel Mokbul Hossain of Uttar Banshbaria of Abdulpur in Natore. He had been missing since April 4.
In 2008, Russel took a break from studies, got married and started at business with the money his father got on retirement.
Studying at RMC, Sabbir got involved in gambling in IPL cricket tournaments and Joy had a business of supplying human skeletons to medical students. The three got addicted to pot and Phensidyl, said law enforcers quoting Joy.
Sabbir borrowed Tk 3 lakh from Russel one and a half years ago while Joy borrowed Tk 1.50 lakh in February for his business. But Sabbir lost a large chunk of the money losing bets while Joy’s business was not doing well, law enforcers said.
Maj Anwar Ali, commander of Railway Colony camp of Rab-5 who led the Russel’s body recovery operation said Sabbir is still on the run but they are on to him.
Russel’s father Mokbul said he called Joy on April 9, broke down in tears and asked for Russel’s whereabouts. He said, “I told him I will never ask for the money, just give me my child back.”
On April 10, Mokbul informed Rab about the abduction and lodged a case with Lalpur Police Station on April 15, said Motiar Rahman, officer-in-charge of the police station.
Courtesy of The Daily Star
