Muezzin joined others at the crime scene, only to be exposed as the killer

After being refused a loan, mosque muezzin Mosharaf Hossain, 42, allegedly flew into a rage and beat 51-year-old Nazma Alam to death with a hammer. He then looted gold jewellery and cash from the house, destroyed evidence of the murder and fled.

Later, when news of the killing spread, he returned to Nazma Alam’s house with other neighbours, where he expressed concern over the incident. He even gave interviews to the media, calling for the killers to be identified and brought to justice. Just 16 hours later, however, a police investigation revealed that Mosharaf Hossain himself was the killer.

The incident took place in the Bishwas Betka area of Tangail town. Mosharaf Hossain served as the muezzin of a mosque at the Betka Char Rasta intersection in the town.

On Tuesday, Mosharaf Hossain confessed before a court to killing Nazma Alam. His confessional statement was recorded by Tangail Judicial Magistrate Golam Mahbub Khan.

After recording the statement, the court sent him to jail at around 8:00 pm. Mosharaf was the muezzin of the mosque at the Betka Char Rasta intersection in the Bishwas Betka area of Tangail town.

Nazma Alam was the wife of Shafiul Alam, also known as Shahin, a resident of the Bishwas Betka area of Tangail town. Shafiul, a veterinary physician, left home at around 9:00 am on Sunday for work, leaving his wife alone in the house.

At around 11:30 am, their domestic worker arrived and found the main door pulled shut but unlocked. Entering the house, the worker found Nazma Alam lying unconscious on a sofa, covered in blood, with her hands tied.

After being informed, Shafiul Alam returned home and discovered that his wife’s two gold bangles, the gold chain she had been wearing around her neck and some cash were missing. The digital video recorder (DVR) of the house’s closed-circuit television (CCTV) system had also been removed, while the monitor had been smashed.

Police arrived at the scene and launched an investigation. Mosharaf Hossain also went there with other neighbours and expressed concern over the incident. Speaking to journalists at the scene, he called for the perpetrators to be identified and brought to justice.

Shafiul Alam later filed a murder case with Tangail Sadar Police Station. A police team began investigating the case with the help of information technology and local informants. Their suspicion eventually fell on mosque muezzin Mosharaf Hossain, who was detained on Monday.

During interrogation, Mosharaf told investigators that he had gone to Nazma Alam’s house on Sunday morning to ask for a loan, but she refused. He noticed that she was wearing gold jewellery.

He was then served tea. Afterwards, on the pretext of washing his hands, he went to the washbasin, picked up a hammer from there and struck Nazma Alam forcefully on the head, knocking her unconscious.

He then took the two gold bangles from her wrists, a gold chain with a locket from her neck and Tk 30,000 in cash. After a while, Nazma Alam began groaning.

At that point, he tied her hands with a towel and tightened a rope around her neck.

Mosharaf further told police that, in an attempt to destroy evidence of the murder, he removed the CCTV DVR and smashed the monitor.

He threw both into a drain in the area. He then returned to his quarters at the mosque and washed the bloodstained clothes he had been wearing. Afterwards, he went back to Nazma Alam’s house, mingled with other neighbours, continued to express concern over the incident and gave interviews to the media.

During interrogation, Mosharaf agreed to make a confessional statement before a magistrate. On Tuesday, police produced him before the Tangail Chief Judicial Magistrate’s Court.

In connection with the case, police on Monday also arrested Santosh Karmakar, a jeweller from the Thanapara area of the town. Investigators said Mosharaf had sold the looted gold jewellery to him. The jewellery was subsequently recovered from Santosh’s possession.

Police also recovered Tk 26,320 from beneath Mosharaf’s pillow at the Jama Mosque at the Bishwas Betka Char Rasta intersection. In addition, they seized the pajama and kurta he had been wearing at the time of the murder