Police recovered three unidentified bodies from two separate locations along the coast of Ukhiya in Cox’s Bazar on Wednesday.
Authorities are investigating whether they are among those missing after a boat carrying Rohingya refugees sank off Teknaf.
One body was recovered from the Madarbania boat ghat area of Jaliapalong Union around 11:30am, while two others were found on Monkhali beach in the same union around 3pm.
Ukhiya Police Station Officer-in-Charge (OC) Atikur Rahman Majumder confirmed the recoveries.
“After recovering the bodies, we sent those to Cox’s Bazar Sadar Hospital for autopsies,” he said.
The two bodies recovered from Monkhali beach were found lying close to each other, police said. However, the identities of all three victims could not be established immediately.
Police are investigating whether the bodies could be those of people who went missing after a boat carrying Rohingya refugees capsized off Baharchhara in Teknaf on the night of 22 September.
“We are verifying whether the recovered bodies are those of anyone missing from the boat accident,” the OC said.
The latest development comes after a boat carrying Rohingya refugees capsized in the sea near Kachhapia boat ghat in Baharchhara Union of Teknaf on Monday night.
According to police and Coast Guard officials, the boat capsized while carrying people attempting to enter Bangladesh from Myanmar by sea.
A woman and a child died in the accident, while Coast Guard personnel and local residents rescued several passengers alive. Police had earlier said another woman remained missing.
According to police, some of the rescued passengers said they had left Bangladesh about a year ago and travelled through Myanmar in an attempt to reach Malaysia. They were later trying to return to Bangladesh by sea.
Police said efforts were underway to identify the three bodies and determine whether they were connected to the Teknaf boat accident.
Legal procedures concerning the recovered bodies are also underway, police said.
