How PBI unraveled the mystery behind Notre Dame College staff Lipika's murder

It was late at night. Lipika Juliana Gomez (40) was sleeping alone in a fourth-floor flat of a rented house in the Sutrapur area of Old Dhaka. She had no idea of the danger lurking outside.

A man entered her flat by climbing down a rope from the roof and breaking the ventilator. He then opened the door for another man to enter. Their intention was to steal. But when Lipika suddenly woke up and screamed, the two thieves changed their plans.

Lipika Gomez, an office assistant at Notre Dame College, was left bleeding after being struck with a pipe by Nazrul (22), who had come to steal. Then Jewel (21) pressed a pillow over her head. After a while, her body went limp.

While leaving with two mobile phones, a handbag and some jewelry, the two locked the door from the outside. The incident occurred on the night of 10 September, 2024. The next morning, when Lipika Gomez did not go to college, her colleagues kept calling her. When her colleagues went to check and entered her flat around noon, they saw her body.

In this incident, a murder case was filed at Sutrapur Police Station on 11 September by Prince Gomez, a cousin of Lipika Gomez. The Police Bureau of Investigation (PBI) began investigating the case. Twelve days after the murder, on 22 September, Jewel and Nazrul were arrested.

On 7 May 2025, the investigating officer, PBI Inspector Mominul Islam, submitted the investigation report to the court. The case is now at the stage of witness testimony and cross-examination in the Dhaka Metropolitan Sessions Judge Court. The two arrested accused are in jail.

The investigation revealed that one of the main reasons for wanting to commit theft at Lipika Gomez's home was that she lived alone in that apartment for a long time. Jewel Rana, the son of the caretaker of a neighbouring house, knew this.

Jewel and Nazrul had known each other for seven to eight years. Jewel told his friend Nazrul about this. They assumed that they would find a large amount of cash if they broke into her flat. Afterwards, the two of them planned the theft together.

Two days before the incident, on 9 September, they scouted the surroundings of the house and also figured out how to enter inside. Then, at around 3am, Nazrul descended onto the backside of Lipika's house from the roof with the help of a rope.

Then, after breaking the ventilator, he entered inside. Nazrul opened the main door from the inside and let Jewel into the apartment. The two were then searching for various items in the room.

At one point, Lipika woke up. She started screaming. Then Nazrul struck her on the head with an iron pipe. Lipika became unconscious instantly and started bleeding. Then Jewel pressed her head down with a pillow to stop the bleeding.

According to PBI's account, Lipika died right after that. Afterward, they left the house taking Lipika's two mobile phones, a handbag and some jewelry. While leaving, they locked the door from the outside using the lock Lipika used.

The plaintiff in the case, Prince Gomez, said that Lipika had been living in this apartment for a long time. Once she changed her apartment from the fifth floor to the fourth floor. During the apartment change, Jewel, the security guard's son from the adjacent building, helped her with her work in exchange for wages. That is when he came to know that Lipika lived alone in that fourth-floor flat.

PBI's investigation revealed that there was BDT 26,350 in Lipika's handbag. The two of them divided this money among themselves. Later, they also sold the two stolen mobile phones. They sold the two phones to Shibluh Hossain and Joy in the Sadarghat area for BDT 3,500 and divided that money among themselves.

Along with the money and mobile phones in Lipika's bag, they also took some ornaments thinking they were jewelry. Later, upon testing, it was found that those were not real jewelry. The investigating officer stated, "After recovering the jewelry, we tested it and found out that the jewelry was imitation. It was not gold."

Investigating officer Mominul Islam told Prothom Alo, "Initially the two of them entered that apartment with the intent to commit theft. At one point, when Lipika woke up, she started screaming. At this time, Nazrul struck her on the head with a rod."

He said that the accused took some money and also took some ornaments thinking they were gold jewelry. Later, upon testing and examination, it was found that those were not real jewelry.

Mominul Islam said, "The two accused gave confessions in court. After the murder, the accused looted two mobile phones. We investigated based on those mobile phones and, using information technology to identify their locations, arrested them from the Sadarghat and Sutrapur areas. At the time of the arrest, police recovered a pair of pliers (nose pliers), two screwdrivers used in the murder and Lipika's stolen belongings from the accused."

Even after Lipika's murder, the apartment door remained locked from the outside. As a result, the matter seemed normal at first. According to the building's caretaker Mitu, at around 9:30am on 11 September, Lipika's office colleague Johnny called her to ask whether Lipika was at home. Mitu went to the fourth floor and saw that the flat was locked. She came downstairs and informed Johnny that the door was locked, presumably Lipika had gone somewhere.

Later in the afternoon, Lipika's colleagues Johnny and Joy came to look for her. They stated that Lipika's mobile phone was switched off. However, since caretaker Mitu had a key to the flat, they decided to open the door and go inside. According to Mitu, she, Johnny, and Joy, all three of them entered the flat.

They saw a light on in the drawing-room. Afterward, they saw the broken ventilator on top of the north-facing window. Going to the bedroom, they saw Lipika lying on the bed on her right side with her head towards the south. There was a pillow beneath and over her head.

Receiving no response despite calling out, Mitu removed the pillow from over her head. That was when a bloody injury was seen on the left side of Lipika's head. At this point, everyone panicked. Getting no response despite calling out again, they realised she had died.

Mitu told Prothom Alo that Lipika used to live on the fifth floor. Later, she came to the fourth-floor flat. While changing apartments, Lipika took help from Jewel, the security guard's son from the adjacent building. Perhaps that was when Jewel got an idea about her. She mentioned that a month ago, she resigned from her responsibility as the caretaker of that building.

Prince Gomez, a cousin of Lipika Gomez, stated that Lipika got married in 1994. Later, she went to London for studies. A few years after returning to the country, in 2000, she got divorced and did not marry again. She also had no children.

According to information provided by the case plaintiff, since 2013, Lipika lived in that apartment with her grandmother. When her grandmother passed away, she lived alone. Lipika was financially well-off from her family. Her father and elder sister had passed away long ago. Her mother lived in their village home. In March 2016, she joined Notre Dame College as an office assistant.

In the confession given to the court, Jewel Rana stated that two days before the incident, on 9 September, he told his friend Nazrul that a woman lived alone next to their house. They could find a huge amount of cash if they robbed her.

Afterwards, they scouted the surroundings of the scene. On the day of the incident, they went to the scene with nose pliers bought for Tk 200. They tried to enter the house by 3am. Nazrul entered inside first. Later, Jewel also entered.

Going inside the room, they found a wallet and a vanity bag. They also pulled out a red box. Lipika woke up while taking an earring from near her head. At that time, Lipika started screaming "Who, who?".

According to Jewel's confession, Nazrul then struck Lipika on the head with a stick and Jewel pressed Lipika's head down with a pillow. Afterwards, seeing excessive bleeding, they closed the room door and went out.

They divided the money among themselves. They threw some things including the rope into the Buriganga River. According to Jewel's confession, Nazrul gave him Tk 16,000 out of Tk 26,000. The same confession was given by accused Nazrul.

The plaintiff of the case, Prince Gomez, said that because the administration is cooperating well, the trial of this sensational case is proceeding quickly. So far, the testimonies of 21 people have been completed.