Construction worker killed in Baridhara crash: Teen finally taken into police custody

Construction worker Mehedi Hasan, 24, was sitting on the pavement taking a rest when a speeding private car mounted the pavement and ran him over. Mehedi was crushed under the car’s wheels and died at the scene.

After the accident, people at the scene detained a teenager who was in the driver’s seat and handed him over to the police. After questioning him, police initially released him into his family’s custody. Following criticism over the decision, police have now taken the teenager into custody.

The incident took place on Road 1 in the Baridhara Diplomatic Zone on Tuesday afternoon. A case was filed with Gulshan police station that night. The plaintiff is the victim’s brother, Moktadir Islam. The teenager was not named in the case. Instead, a 44-year-old man named Akash Marak was accused as the driver.

On Wednesday afternoon, Prothom Alo Online published a report headlined, “Teenager was behind the wheel, but someone else named as accused in case.” After the report prompted criticism on social media, police analysed video footage and found the teenager’s involvement. He was subsequently brought into contact with the law, said Mohammad Ruhul Kabir Khan, deputy commissioner of the Gulshan division of police.

DC Ruhul Kabir told Prothom Alo that he had seen the report published by Prothom Alo Online. Police subsequently analysed CCTV footage and found the teenager’s involvement. He was then brought from his home in Gulshan to the police station and taken into custody.

According to police sources, the teenager is a 17-year-old ‘O’ Level student at an English-medium school in the Gulshan area of Dhaka. His father is a captain with Biman Bangladesh Airlines. The private car involved in the accident is registered in his mother’s name.

Video footage of the incident has circulated on social media. It shows the private car hitting Mehedi, who was sitting on the pavement, before crashing into a streetlight pole and coming to a stop. Two people then get out of the car. The teenager, wearing a black T-shirt, can be seen getting out from the driver’s seat.

A middle-aged man wearing a shirt gets out from the other side of the car. When people from the surrounding area rush over, both men remain beside the vehicle. The teenager is then seen moving away from the scene. People later detained him and handed him over to the police.

Asked why the teenager had initially been released, Gulshan police station Inspector (Investigation) Ismail Hossain told Prothom Alo that he had been taken into custody to prevent him from becoming “a victim of the mob” amid the anger of people at the scene. After questioning, he was released that night into the custody of his uncle.

Mehedi Hasan’s home is in Sonaray village of Domar upazila in Nilphamari. Attempts to contact his brother, Moktadir Islam, to ask why the teenager was not named in the case were unsuccessful. His mobile phone was switched off.

Mehedi Hasan, who was killed after being run over by the car, was speech-impaired. Although he communicated through gestures, he had dreams of doing something for his family. He worked as a construction labourer alongside his studies. In his spare time, he made paper flowers and sold them at fairs.

After saving some money from his work, he had hoped to repair his family’s dilapidated home before the next Eid. With that hope, he came to Dhaka from his village on the night of 21 September. But before he could even start work, his dreams were cut short by the accident.

Prothom Alo’s Nilphamari correspondent reports that when he visited Mehedi Hasan’s home yesterday afternoon, neighbours and relatives had gathered there. His mother, Mosa. Minu Begum, was crying as she said, “He left home with so many hopes, my son. He had wanted to go once before, but I didn’t let him. I told him it was too hot and sunny. I said, ‘Go after two months, when the weather gets a little cooler.’ He said, ‘Okay, Ma.’”

Mehedi’s body arrived at his home in a hearse at around noon yesterday, Wednesday, drawing relatives and neighbours together. His funeral prayer was held at 3:00 pm at Hajipara Cemetery, a short distance from his home, after which he was buried.

Relatives said Mehedi was a second-year BA (pass) student at Domar Government College. To improve his family’s financial situation, he worked as a construction labourer and also made paper flowers, which he sold at rural fairs and shops. Mehedi was the second of two brothers and one sister. His elder brother and younger sister are both married.

His grieving father, Ershadul Haque, said, “I personally put him on the bus to Dhaka on Monday night. Today, his body came back. I still cannot believe it. If I had known I would lose my son like this, I would never have let him go to Dhaka. Now everything is over for me.”