The police have arrested a youth for allegedly strangling Mohammad Mohsin, alias Moushumi Hijra—a “Guruma” (mentor) of a section of the local hijra community—due to resentment over being blackmailed into a physical relationship using intimate photographs and videos.
The suspect, identified as Momin, alias Sheikh Roni, has confessed to strangling Moushumi with a rope during an altercation at her residence in the Ambagan area of Khulshi in Chattogram.
The arrest and investigation
According to the police, Momin was arrested on Monday at around 11am from an area adjacent to the Sagarika Stadium under Pahartali Police Station. Officers identified and tracked him down using CCTV footage and information technology.
Momin hails from Sabdalpur village in Nachol Upazila, Chapainawabganj. He had been residing in Christian Para (Pathanpara), near Sagarika Stadium, at the home of a hijra leader named Falguni Hijra, where he was locally known as her “alleged husband”.
Moushumi’s body was recovered by police on Saturday at approximately 10:30am from her residence in the Hijra Colony near the Ambagan Railway Colony, where she lived alone. Following the discovery, investigators retrieved CCTV footage from her residence.
The footage, which subsequently circulated on social media, showed a youth in a white t-shirt entering her home at 1:14am on Friday night and leaving nearly three hours later at 3:52am. Police analysed the footage and identified the individual as Momin.
Motive of the murder
Bayezid Bostami Zone Assistant Police Commissioner Arif Hossain said that the murder was driven strictly by anger over blackmail and forced physical relations, rather than theft or robbery.
According to police investigators, Moushumi and Momin had been involved in a long-term extramarital relationship. Although Moushumi paid Momin for physical relations, Momin reportedly disliked her and wished to avoid her.
However, Moushumi allegedly possessed several objectionable photographs and videos of Momin, using them to blackmail and coerce him into continuing the relationship.
On the night of the incident, Momin visited Moushumi’s home at her request. Following a physical encounter, an argument erupted over the blackmail and other issues. During the dispute, an enraged Momin wrapped a rope around Moushumi’s neck and strangled her to death.
While a rumour had circulated that Moushumi was keeping Tk5 lakh in her house from selling a cow from her farm the previous day, police dismissed this as the motive.
Assistant Commissioner Arif Hossain clarified that CCTV footage and Momin’s own confession confirmed that no money was stolen from the residence. “Momin went there solely at Moushumi’s call. The murder was not committed for the purpose of stealing or looting money,” he said.
Legal proceedings
Khulshi Police Station Officer-in-Charge (OC) Abdur Rahim confirmed that a case has already been filed regarding the incident. He said that the police rushed to the scene immediately after the murder and conducted a swift investigation using information technology, leading to Momin’s arrest.
Momin has been sent to court to record his confessional statement under Section 164. “He has confessed to the murder, and we expect him to give a confessional statement in court as well,” OC Abdur Rahim added.
