Investigators are trying to establish what happened during a 15-minute period before former Air Force officer KM Tahsif Sauri’s death, after CCTV footage showed a police patrol leaving a field near Tongi’s Mazar slum at 1:20am and his friend-like younger acquaintance Ahmed Shahriar Reza Deep returning to the slum at the same time. A message was sent to Tahsif’s mother’s phone at 1:35am, but his whereabouts and condition at that point remain unclear.
Tahsif’s body was recovered from the Rajabari Ghat area of the Turag River on the afternoon of October 28. His father, KM Enayetul Karim, has filed a murder case, in which Deep and a young woman who was with Tahsif earlier that night have been arrested.
Naval Police have questioned both suspects in remand on several occasions. Investigators said the questioning had revealed details about Tahsif’s final night, but the cause and circumstances of his death have not yet been confirmed.
Abdullah Al Mamun, Superintendent of Police for the Dhaka region of Naval Police, said: “We are verifying and monitoring how much of the statements given by the accused during remand are accurate. Since there is time, we will complete the remaining work and see what results emerge.”
Investigators are examining several possible motives and circumstances, including previous enmity, financial transactions and personal disputes. Officials are also not ruling out the possibility that Tahsif may have accidentally fallen into the river while fleeing in the presence of police.
In an application for Deep’s third remand, the investigating officer said it was necessary to determine why Tahsif may have been killed, recover evidence, identify any main planner and accomplices, and establish whether hired killers or others were involved. The application also cited the need to cross-check CCTV footage, eyewitness accounts and statements by the accused.
According to Deep’s statement, he, Tahsif and the young woman went to a bar in Uttara Sector 18 at 10:18pm on October 27. Tahsif had been upset after learning that the woman had a relationship with another young man, and the matter had led to disputes between them.
Deep said Tahsif asked the bar authorities to play sad music through the sound system. All three drank alcohol, and Tahsif argued with the woman about her relationship with the other man until midnight.
Deep said Tahsif told the woman: “You have taken yaba; I will take something bigger than that. I will take heroin.”
At about midnight, Tahsif left the bar on his motorcycle and dropped the woman at her home in Uttara Sector 18. Deep arrived there separately on his own motorcycle. Tahsif and Deep then headed towards a field beside Tongi’s Mazar slum, a trip Deep said was Tahsif’s own decision.
Deep said they parked their motorcycles near the slum and went towards the field, where local drug users and dealers were present. Tahsif allegedly asked loudly for heroin and said he was willing to pay any amount. Deep claimed Tahsif bought heroin from several drug dealers and consumed it, losing control after drinking alcohol at the bar and taking heroin.
CCTV footage from two cameras at the entrance to the slum showed Tahsif entering quickly at 12:39am. Deep’s motorcycle entered shortly afterwards.
Footage from two cameras at the entrance to an alley showed Tahsif attempting to enter at 12:40am, accompanied by Deep. A woman from the slum stopped him and argued with him.
The woman said Tahsif was trying to force his way inside and had been warned that he could face trouble if he entered. According to her, Tahsif replied: “I will go inside; there is no problem. We will conduct a raid, you will have no problem.”
Tahsif then told Deep not to engage in the argument and to move quickly through the alley. The pair reached the main road and then went towards the riverbank.
CCTV footage outside the Mazar gate showed Tahsif clearly at 12:52am. He appeared to ask several people by the roadside for something and told them to move away from the road. Deep was behind him.
No CCTV cameras were available beyond the Mazar gate. Investigators said it takes about six minutes on foot to reach an open field beside the slum, where there is a building staircase. Deep said the pair had last sat there.
At 1:05am, CCTV footage outside Pinky Garments showed an eight-member police team entering the field. Deep said people in the field began running after seeing police. He said he ran towards the riverbank and hid behind Pillar No. 29 of the Turag River, while Tahsif headed towards the riverbank.
Deep said he became separated from Tahsif in the darkness and could not find him afterwards.
Local residents said people often jump into the water and swim across the river to escape when police conduct operations in the area. Investigators have not been able to establish whether Tahsif fell into the river while fleeing or whether something else happened to him.
At around 1:20am, CCTV footage outside the Mazar gate showed the police team leaving the field. At the same time, footage from Pinky Garments showed Deep returning to the slum. Another camera recorded him walking at 1:21am, but no subsequent footage showed his movements.
Deep said he left for home at 1:52am, leaving Tahsif behind. CCTV footage has not established where Deep was during the period between 1:21am and 1:52am.
Investigators have identified Tahsif’s movements through CCTV footage from his home to Tongi’s Mazar slum. However, no footage is available between the slum and the Turag River bank because there are no CCTV cameras in that area.
An investigator involved in the case said Deep had been taken to the scene and his statement had been checked. No injury marks were found on Tahsif’s body, while information from mobile-phone analysis and surrounding circumstances had left the case unclear.
Officials are awaiting the post-mortem report to determine whether Tahsif consumed drugs or was poisoned. The forensic department at Shaheed Suhrawardy Medical College Hospital collected samples from his stomach and kidneys, as well as viscera and blood samples, for testing. Police also collected samples for DNA tests.
A senior Police Bureau of Investigation official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the absence of injury marks made it difficult to describe the death as a killing. The official said viscera reports sometimes cite the cause of death as “unknown” or “uncertain”, which could make it difficult to establish how Tahsif died.
Tahsif’s father, KM Enayetul Karim, said: “The relevant authorities will investigate and be able to uncover the truth. I believe justice will be established.”
Tahsif left home with his motorcycle after Deep called him downstairs on the evening of October 27. Naval Police recovered his body from the Rajabari Ghat area of the Turag River the following afternoon.
Deep was handed over to Naval Police on the night of October 30 after discussions over what action should be taken against him, as no case had been filed in the three days following the recovery of the body. Tahsif’s father filed the murder case that night, after which Deep was shown arrested.
Police recovered Tahsif’s motorcycle from the Tongi Mazar slum area the following morning based on information provided by Deep. Deep also admitted going to the area with Tahsif at night to buy drugs.
Investigators have yet to determine the cause of death more than a week after the incident. CCTV footage has reconstructed much of Tahsif’s final seven hours, while statements have been obtained from Deep and the young woman. However, no reliable footage or eyewitness account has emerged about the period in which Tahsif’s final moments occurred.