Ex-Army Officer Re-Arrested in Tonu Murder Case

Former army member Hafizur Rahman (52), who was previously released on bail in the Sohagi Jahan Tonu murder case, has been re-arrested by the Police Bureau of Investigation (PBI) from his residence in Keraniganj, Dhaka, on Saturday (August 8).

PBI Police Superintendent Abu Yusuf stated that Hafizur was re-arrested after failing to comply with the Chamber Court's order, which had directed police to take him into custody if he did not surrender. Procedures are currently underway to produce him before a Cumilla court.

Hafizur was initially arrested on April 22 this year. On August 2, the High Court granted him a six-month interim bail, leading to his release from prison on August 4. However, the state appealed against the bail order. On August 6, the Appellate Division's Chamber Judge stayed the High Court's bail and directed him to surrender within 24 hours, ordering police to arrest him otherwise.

Sohagi Jahan Tonu, a student at Cumilla Victoria Government College, went missing on the evening of March 20, 2016, after heading out for private tutoring inside the Cumilla Cantonment area. Her body was later recovered from a bush near the cantonment's power house. It was initially suspected that she was raped and murdered.

The following day, Tonu’s father, Yaar Hossain (a former office assistant of the Cantonment Board), filed a murder case against unidentified individuals with Cumilla Kotwali Model Police Station.

The investigation agency, PBI, arrested Hafizur from his Keraniganj residence on the night of April 22 this year. Hafizur Rahman is a former Senior Warrant Officer of the Bangladesh Army who was stationed at Cumilla Cantonment during the time of the incident in 2016. He was retired from service in 2023.