Father bought chocolates and chips for children from shop on night of murders

Fear has gripped residents surrounding the house in Rautkona village of Kapasia upazila in Gazipur, where the bodies of a housewife, her three children and another relative were recovered.

Since the incident, the head of the household, Forkan Mia, 40, has remained absconding. Police have yet to arrest him.

It has emerged that, on the night before the killings, Forkan had taken two of his children to a nearby shop, where he bought them chips and chocolates.

Adjacent to the house where the five people were killed is a small grocery shop run by Abdur Rashid, who sells tea and daily essentials.

Speaking at his shop around noon today, Sunday, Rashid said the bodies were recovered early Saturday. The previous evening, at around 8:00 pm on Friday, the accused father, Forkan Mia, came to the shop carrying his younger daughter, Faria, and holding the hand of another daughter, Umme Habiba. He bought chocolates and chips for the children.

Rashid further said he closed his shop and returned home by 10:00 pm, and therefore knew nothing of what happened afterwards. Letting out a deep sigh, the shopkeeper told this correspondent, “If children are not safe in their own home with their parents, then where will they ever find safety?”

A group of local students visited the house at around 1:30 pm. Curious residents from nearby areas were also seen walking around the property.

Locals said members of the forensic department had arrived at the house at approximately 8:30 am today and stayed there for some time before leaving.

One of the visiting students, Md Ariful Islam, an SSC examinee, said, “This incident has shaken the people across the country. We cannot understand how a father could do something like this. It is an act of unimaginable brutality.”

Outside the house, local resident Mosa. Sraboni described the horrific scene she witnessed inside. “I do not believe this could have been carried out by one person alone,” she said. “After hearing the news, I went inside and saw a gruesome situation. In one room, Sharmin Akter tied to the window grill beside a bed. Both of her hands were bound. She was wearing a new sari. Tape had been wrapped around her mouth, most of her face was covered with black cloth, and there were bloodstains on the wall behind her back. I have never seen such a killing in my life.”

Another local resident, Mosa. Noor, said the community remained deeply frightened following the murders. “A father has not only killed his three children, but also his wife. This is beyond imagination. Wherever the offender is hiding, he must be arrested and brought to justice. If a wife and children are not safe with the husband and father of the family, then where are they safe? After a father, a husband is supposed to be a woman’s shelter. If there is no justice for this, such incidents will continue to happen in the country.”

Police recovered the bodies of a woman, her three daughters and her brother from a house in Rautkona village of Kapasia on Saturday morning. Since the incident, the woman’s husband has been missing. Police suspect that he may have carried out the killings.

The deceased were identified as Sharmin Akter, 30, daughter of Shahadat Hossain Molla of Paikkandi Uttar Charpara village in Gopalganj Sadar; Sharmin’s daughters Mim Khanam, 15, Umme Habiba, 8, and Faria, 2; and her brother Rasul Mia, 22.

Forkan Mia, 40, Sharmin’s husband, is the prime suspect in the killings. His home is in Meri Gopinathpur village of Gopalganj Sadar upazila. He had reportedly been living with his family in the rented house in Kapasia for around five years and worked as a private car driver. Sharmin’s brother Rasul Mia worked at a factory in Gazipur Sadar.

Sharmin’s paternal aunt, Eva Akter, told Prothom Alo that Forkan had telephoned her brother Mishkat and said, “Everything is finished for me. I have killed them all. You will never find me again.”

After receiving the call, five or six relatives rushed to the scene in the morning. They found the collapsible gate of the building open, along with the doors of the ground-floor rooms. Upon entering, they discovered the lifeless bodies of the five victims. They later informed police by calling the national emergency number 999 and also went to Kapasia police station.

Eva Akter alleged that Forkan had informed Sharmin of his intention to marry another woman. Sharmin was distressed by the matter, and tensions had persisted between the couple. About six or seven months ago, Forkan assaulted Sharmin, leaving swellings on different parts of her body. She was later treated at a hospital in Dhaka. After recovering, she stayed for some time at her parental home before Forkan eventually brought her back. However, disputes over the issue of a second marriage reportedly continued. Sharmin had told her husband that she had nowhere else to go with her children and therefore wished to remain with him.

Police also recovered a typed document resembling a complaint addressed to Gopalganj Sadar police station from beside the bodies. However, the document carried no signature. Officer-in-Charge Md Anisur Rahman of the station told Prothom Alo that no complaint or general diary relating to the matter had been filed there.

According to the typed document, Forkan Mia allegedly submitted the complaint to the police station on 3 May. In it, he named his wife, father-in-law and nine others. The document claimed that his father-in-law had taken Tk 1 million from him through his wife on several occasions.

It also alleged that his wife had been involved in an extramarital relationship with one of her relatives. The complaint further stated that when he protested against these matters, his father-in-law and others tied him up and physically tortured him.

Sharmin’s uncle, Md Ujjal Mia, rejected the allegations. “As far as we know, Forkan had not recently visited his in-laws’ house. There was no incident in which he was assaulted. I believe he wrote those allegations in an attempt to protect himself,” he said.

The investigating officer in the case and inspector (investigation) at Kapasia police station, Jubayer Ahmed, said the prime accused had not yet been arrested and efforts to apprehend him were continuing.