8-yr-old boy killed after abduction

An eight year old boy was allegedly abducted and murdered for a ransom of Tk three lakh in Kalai Upazila in Joypurhat district.

The body of Tauhid Shamim Shuvo was recovered around 150 yards away from his residence in Munshipara village at around 6:00am yesterday, less than one day after his abduction.   

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The victim, only son of timber trader Abdul Gafur alias Tota , went missing at around 10:30 am on Friday after he left home to play with a top.

He was a second year student at the local Kakoli Shishu Niketon school.

The abductors might have killed Shuvo elsewhere and dumped the body near his house at night, officer-in-charge of Kalai Police Station Nuruzzaman Chowdhury said.

Police are trying to find the culprits, he added.

Gafur said he received a missed call from an unknown number at around 3:00 pm on Friday as the family were frantically searching for his missing son.

He called the number back several times and no one received it. Finally at around 7:00 pm someone picked up the phone and demanded Tk three lakh as ransom for Shuvo's safe return.

The man on the phone said they would contact Shuvo's father again at 8:00pm which they did not. The phone was found switched off when the family attempted to make contact with the unknown abductor.

Unable to make any contact with his son's abductors, Gafur finally filed an abduction case with Kalai Police Station at around 11:00 pm accusing unknown people of abducting his son.

Rahela Begum, a neighbour, first saw Shuvo's body when she got up to feed her cows early yesterday. The body with no visible injury marks was lying beside a pile of straw. He was wearing the same clothes he had on when he disappeared.

His mother Jakia Begum demanded justice for his son's killing  and the arrest of his killers.

The body was handed over to the family after autopsy at Joypurhat District Modern Hospital.

Ataur Rahman, resident medial officer of the hospital, said it primarily appeared that the boy was strangulated to death. The autopsy report would be finalised after the medical board had met to discuss it, he said.