Discarded Medical Prescriptions Lead Investigators to Solve Cold Case Murder of Domestic Worker
Photo Collected
The discovery of a discarded suitcase in a canal along the Mymensingh-Kishoreganj highway on the morning of November 9, 2020, launched a complex murder investigation that would eventually expose a harrowing tale of domestic servitude and calculated concealment. When local authorities retrieved the luggage from the water near Gouripur, they discovered the body of a young woman weighed down by five bricks. The victim, who bore clear signs of physical trauma, remained unidentified for months as investigators struggled to find leads among the national database of missing persons.
The investigation took a definitive turn when the case was transferred to the Police Bureau of Investigation (PBI). While initial sweeps of the crime scene yielded little, detectives identified several discarded medical prescriptions hidden within the suitcase. These documents, previously overlooked, served as the critical link that led PBI officers to a residential apartment in Mymensingh city.
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Inside the residence, investigators identified the victim as 21-year-old Sabina, who had been employed as a domestic worker by the apartment’s residents, Abul Khair Zakir Hossain and his wife, Rifat Jesmin Jesi. Subsequent analysis of CCTV footage, mobile tracking data, and forensic evidence confirmed that the couple had murdered Sabina and attempted to dispose of her body to evade justice. Both suspects were arrested by the PBI on January 27, 2021.
During interrogation, the couple admitted that the fatal incident occurred on November 8, 2020. Rifat Jesmin reportedly flew into a rage when Sabina, who was ill, failed to wake up on time. The ensuing assault—which included pulling the victim’s hair and slamming her head against a wall—resulted in Sabina’s death. Upon his return, Zakir Hossain conspired with his wife to hide the body. They packed the remains into a sack, secured it with bricks to ensure it would remain submerged, and concealed it inside a suitcase before transporting it to the canal in their personal vehicle.
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PBI investigators discovered that Sabina had been subjected to long-term abuse, including restricted movement, severe dietary deprivation, and near-total isolation from her family. To maintain the illusion that she was still alive, the couple had continued to send money to Sabina’s relatives, frequently using various pretexts to prevent any direct contact or visitation.
According to PBI Chief and Additional Inspector General Mostafa Kamal, the perpetrators went to great lengths to orchestrate an untraceable disappearance. However, the oversight of leaving the medical prescriptions inside the suitcase, combined with modern forensic tracking, proved to be their undoing. The evidence ultimately dismantled the couple’s efforts to bury the truth, revealing the systematic cruelty that preceded the final act of violence.
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