A Dhaka court on Thursday sent Billal, a key suspect in the murder of Swechchasebak Dal leader Azizur Rahman Musabbir, to jail after he completed his remand.
Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Habibullah Piash issued the order after investigating officer Tejgaon Police Inspector Mohammad Aminul Islam presented Billal before the court.
Billal had undergone a second three-day remand, and the investigating officer had requested the court to record Billal’s voluntary confession after he initially agreed to provide a statement.
However, Billal later withdrew his consent to testify, prompting the judge to order his detention in jail.
Dhaka Prosecution Department sub-inspector Arif confirmed the development to TIMES of Bangladesh, stating, “The accused initially agreed to testify but later retracted his statement. As a result, the judge ordered his detention.”
Billal was arrested on 11 January from the East Nakhalpara area of Tejgaon Industrial Zone. The court initially granted a seven-day remand, and following its completion, Billal was granted an additional three-day remand, which ended on 19 January.
According to the case details, on 7 January, Musabbir was with friends at West Tejturi Bazar. Around 8:10pm, he left to return home.
Ten minutes later, near Ahsanullah Institute in Tejturi Bazar, a group of four to five unidentified assailants ambushed him and opened fire.
Musabbir fell to the ground, and when his friend Sufian Bepari Masud attempted to intervene, the attackers shot him as well. The assailants fled the scene, and local residents rushed Mosabbir and Masud to a nearby hospital.
Musabbir was declared dead, while Masud was transferred to Dhaka Medical College Hospital for treatment.
Musabbir’s wife, Suraiya Begum, filed a murder case at Tejgaon Police Station on 7 January.
