A government primary school teacher from Gazipur was found dead in a hotel in Shariatpur's Bhedarganj on Tuesday, Oct. 20. His family says the discovery came days after someone used his phone to demand 20,000 taka.
Police recovered the body of Abul Bashar Talukdar, 40, at midday from a second-floor room of Dhaka Residential Hotel, next to the Bhedarganj thana bridge, the Bangla news portal The Dhaka Diary reported.
The hotel's owner, Ataur Rahman, and its manager, Mamun, are reported to have been absconding since the incident, according to a senior police officer quoted by The Dhaka Diary. Police say they have not yet established how the teacher died.
Who was Abul Bashar Talukdar?
Bashar was an assistant teacher at No. 82 Kholapara Government Primary School in Gazipur Sadar Upazila, according to The Dhaka Diary. He was the son of the late Jonab Ali Talukdar of Deuliabari village in Kaliakair Upazila, Gazipur.
He lived and worked in Gazipur. When he went missing, he was travelling to his family's ancestral home in Shariatpur, more than one district away.
What happened before he was found dead
The following account comes from family and police sources cited by The Dhaka Diary. Some details, including the threat, are allegations made by relatives that police have not publicly confirmed.
- Sunday, Oct. 18, morning: Bashar left his home in Gazipur for his grandfather's house in Chamta Union, Naria Upazila, Shariatpur.
- From Sunday: The family was told he was staying at a friend's house, his nephew Kabir Hosen said.
- Monday, Oct. 19: Someone else called twice from Bashar's phone demanding money for treatment, Hosen said.
- Tuesday, Oct. 20, midday: Police recovered his body from the hotel room in Bhedarganj.
According to The Dhaka Diary, the caller phoned Bashar's wife from his mobile, said he needed medical treatment and demanded 20,000 taka. She asked where he was and offered to go there and arrange his treatment herself. The caller did not give a specific location.
A photo of Bashar lying down was later sent from the same phone, the outlet reported. Relatives allege the caller threatened that his body would not be found if the money was not paid.
Family members then called the number several times. No one answered.
How police traced the phone to the Bhedarganj hotel
Worried for his safety, the family contacted Kaliakair police station in Gazipur, The Dhaka Diary reported. The phone's location was traced to Bhedarganj in Shariatpur.
Bhedarganj police were informed and went to Dhaka Residential Hotel, where they found the body in a room. The case now spans two districts, with the initial complaint made in Gazipur and the recovery carried out by police in Shariatpur.
The research does not explain why Bashar was in Bhedarganj rather than Naria. It also does not identify the friend he was said to be staying with.
Why are the hotel owner and manager being sought?
Additional Police Superintendent (Gosairhat Circle) Md. Shamsul Arefin told The Dhaka Diary that the owner, Ataur Rahman, and the manager, Mamun, were reported to have been absconding since the incident.
Arefin said the investigation would determine who made the money demand from Bashar's phone and how he died. He said it would also establish whether the owner's and manager's absence was linked to the incident. He did not say they were suspects.
The actual cause of the teacher's death had not yet been confirmed, Arefin said. He said a crime scene investigation team would come to inspect the scene and investigate, and legal action would be taken after the investigation.
Hosen, the nephew, said the family wants exemplary punishment for those involved, according to The Dhaka Diary.
What is still unknown about the Gazipur primary school teacher death
The research does not say whether a case has been filed or whether anyone has been arrested. No post-mortem result has been reported.
It is also not known who made the calls and sent the photo from Bashar's phone, or where the hotel's owner and manager are now. Police have said these questions will be answered by the investigation, beginning with the crime scene team's inspection of the hotel room.
Correction: An earlier version of this story incorrectly said Bashar's grandfather's home was in "Narayanganj Upazila" and quoted his nephew as saying "Narayanganj." The home is in Chamta Union, Naria Upazila, Shariatpur.