Staff Reporter :
A Rangpur court on Tuesday granted 10-day police remand of two arrested persons for interrogation in connection with the murder case of Japanese citizen Hoshi Konio.
The remanded persons are: Rangpur City Unit leader of BNP Rashedun Nabi Khan Biplob and Humayun Kabir Hira, business partner of the deceased Japanese national.
Rashedun Nabi Khan Biplob is the younger brother of President of Jatiyotabadi Swechchasebak Dal Habibun Nabi Khan Sohel. On the other hand, Humayun Kabir Hira is brother-in- law of deceased’s [Hoshi Konio] landlord Zakaria Haque Bala.
Earlier in the morning, Investigation Officer [IO] of the Japanese national murder case and Officer-in-Charge [Investigation] of Kawnia Police Station Mamunur Rashid produced the arrested persons before the court praying 10-day police remand for each of them. After hearing, Senior Judicial Magistrate of Rangpur Md. Abu Taleb granted the police remand.
“The arrested persons are undergoing interrogation under police remand in connection with the murder case,” Officer-in-Charge of Kawnia Police Station Rezaul Karim said.
Police arrested four persons, including business partner of victim, Humayun Kabir Hira, after the murder. Hira was later shown arrested in the case. Besides, family members of Rashedun Nabi Khan Biplob said that he was picked up by plainclothes police on the day of murder. However, the police at that time denied the allegation.
Biplob’s wife Shirin Begum yesterday said: “My husband is innocent. He is not involved in the murder of Japanese national.”
Local sources said that BNP Rangpur City Unit Organising Secretary Anisur Rahman was picked up by law enforcement agency same day and he is still untraced.
In the meanwhile, a four-member Japanese team, including officials of Japanese Embassy, arrived in Rangpur on Tuesday for observing investigation into Hoshi Konio murder case and to take his body from the mortuary of Rangpur Medical College Hospital [RMCH].
Deputy Commissioner of Rangpur Rahat Anwar yesterday said that the body of the Japanese national would be handed over on Tuesday.
The DC said that local administrations and authorities of RMCH have completed all necessary legal formalities for handing over the body from the mortuary to the Japanese team anytime. But the body was not received by the Japanese team till the time of filing this report at 7:30pm yesterday.
The five-member probe committee, headed by Acting DIG of Rangpur Range Police Humayun Kabir, still did not get a clue to unveil motive behind the murder of Japanese citizen.
Several law enforcement and intelligence agencies, including Rapid Action Battalion [RAB], District Police, Detective and Criminal Intelligence Division, Police Bureau of Investigation [PBI] and Criminal Investigation Department [CID] have been conducting coordinate investigation to unearth the mystery.
A band of three masked criminals, riding on a motorcycle, gunned down Hoshi Konio, 66, in Katchu Alutari village under Kawnia upazila in the outskirts of the city on Saturday morning.
The victim was crossing the area towards his agriculture farm set up for grass cultivation in Katchu Alutari village when the killers gunned down him.
Police said Kunio had been residing as a paying guest at the house of Zakaria Haque Bala at Munshipara area in Rangpur for last few months and he used to visit his grass farm daily in the morning.
On Monday, Japan’s top government spokesman expressed outrage over the killing of Hoshi Konio who became the second foreigner to be gunned down in Bangladesh in less than a week.
The United Nations asked its officials and employees not to visit Rangpur in the wake of murder of a Japanese national. Earlier, several countries, including USA and UK, issued travel alert to their citizens.
