Police have arrested a 32-year-old man for allegedly strangling his wife to death following a domestic dispute in the capital’s Shahjahanpur area.
The arrest was announced on Tuesday in an official press release signed by Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) Media and Public Relations Division Additional Deputy Commissioner Niaz Mehedi.
According to police, Rubel Mia married Swapna Khatun Akter through a family arrangement around 11 years ago and the couple had two children. Police said Rubel was unemployed and addicted to drugs, and the couple had been experiencing persistent marital discord.
Swapna had previously served Rubel with divorce notices on two occasions, but they later reconciled and resumed their conjugal life at his request.
The dispute escalated when Rubel assaulted his wife on 7 August. The following night, family members and local dignitaries gathered at their rented home in Gulbagh under Shahjahanpur Police Station to mediate and resolve the issue.
During the meeting, Rubel promised that he would not assault his wife again. However, another altercation broke out between the couple that night, resulting in several household pots and pans being smashed.
On the morning of 9 August, Swapna discovered the broken utensils and asked Rubel to leave the house. Angered by the demand amid their ongoing dispute, Rubel allegedly choked and strangled his wife to death before fleeing the scene.
At around 12:10pm that day, a relative of Swapna went to the house. After receiving no response to calls, the relative opened the door, entered the house and found Swapna’s body lying on a bed.
The national emergency service, 999, was subsequently notified, prompting officers from Shahjahanpur Police Station to recover the body. After preparing an inquest (surathal) report, police sent the body to the Dhaka Medical College Hospital morgue for an autopsy.
A murder case was subsequently filed with Shahjahanpur Police Station following a complaint lodged by Swapna’s brother, Wahed Ali.
After the case was filed, police tracked Rubel’s location using intelligence and technology and arrested him at around 10:30pm on 9 August from the Amtala Mor area under Shahjahanpur Police Station.
During initial interrogation, Rubel admitted his involvement in the murder. He later gave a confessional statement before a court under Section 164 of the Code of Criminal Procedure.
