Mother, son found dead at home

A mother and her son were found dead at a house in Kharpara residential area of Mirabazar in Sylhet city yesterday morning.

Her five-year-old daughter was rescued alive from the house.

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The deceased were identified as Rokeya Begum, 40 and her son Rabiul Islam Rupon, 16.

Police suspect that they were murdered on Friday afternoon or night. Several knife wounds were found in the woman's throat, hands and thigh; the boy appeared to have died from suffocation by a pillow.

Paritosh Ghose, additional commissioner of Sylhet Metropolitan Police (SMP), said police found finger marks in the only survivor of the accident, the deceased's five-year-old daughter Raisa Begum's throat, raising suspicion that the murderer also attempted to kill her. Police suspect the child might have lost consciousness and the murderer thought she had died.

Rokeya Begum, owner of a small beauty parlour moved into a ground floor apartment of the three-storey building a year ago as a tenant. Her husband Helal Ahmed, once an expatriate worker, was now paralysed and lived with his brother at Barutkhana area in the city, the house owner Md Salman said.

Salman said the son, Rabiul took his Secondary School Certificate examination from Shahjalal Jamea School and College this year.

Jakir Hossain, Rokeya's brother said that he had been trying to get in touch with Rokeya since Friday but as she did not answer her phone, he came down on Sunday morning at around 10:30 to check on her.

“The door was locked from inside and no one opened it. When I started calling them by name I heard my niece Raisa crying inside the house. I fetched the landlord and he called the local councillor and police. They broke into the house and found the dead bodies of my sister and nephew,” Jakir said.

Sadek Kawsar Dastagir, assistant commissioner of Kotwali Police Station of SMP said that no case has been filed yet and no one has been arrested in connection of the murders.

The dead bodies have been sent to Sylhet MAG Osmani Medical College Hospital for autopsy. The deceased's daughter is now in police custody for safety, he said.

Md Abdul Wahab Miah, additional deputy commissioner of SMP said that the Police Bureau of Investigation (PBI), Crime Investigation Department (CID) are working on leads in the case.