Lalmonirhat lynching: Key accused confesses in court

Abul Hossain, alias Hossain Ali, the key accused in two out of three cases filed in connection with the brutal murder of Abu Yunus Md Shahidunnabi Jewel in Lalmonirhat, has made his confessional statement in court.

Senior Judicial Magistrate Court Judge Afaz Uddin recorded his statement on Saturday afternoon after Abul Hossain appeared before the bench following a five-day remand, confirmed Md Mahmudunnabi, the case investigating officer and inspector of Lalmonirhat Detective Branch of Police.

Earlier on November 9, Senior Judicial Magistrate Court Judge Ferdousi Begum placed Abul Hossain on a five-day remand.

On November 7, the Detective Branch of Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) apprehended Abul Hossain in Dhaka's Kuril Bishwa Road area.

DB Inspector Mahmudunnabi said: “Abul Hossain admitted to being guilty of assaulting Jewel before dragging him out of the Burimari Central Jame Mosque on October 29, the day of the incident.”

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Jewel, 50, was beaten to death by an angry mob on the Burimari Union Parishad premises over rumours of a desecration of the Quran.

The mob then took his body some 300 metres away to the Prothom Bashkol area on Lalmonirhat-Burimari highway and set it on fire, fuelled with dried materials, tyres and petrol.

Over a thousand people were present during the incident, including people from outside Lalmonirhat, according to Patgram Upazila Nirbahi Officer Kamrun Nahar.

Muezzin sent to jail

Meanwhile, Afiz Uddin, the muezzin of Burimari Central Jame Mosque, arrested over the murder of Abu Yunus Md Shahidunnabi Jewel, was sent to jail by the same court on Saturday.

Confirming the matter, Lalmonirhat Detective Branch of police Officer-in-Charge (OC) Omar Faruk said Afiz Uddin, 60, was shown as arrested in the murder case and produced before the court of Senior Judicial Magistrate Md Afaz Uddin of Cognizance Court 3 of Lalmonirhat.

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Police asked for a five-day remand for interrogating Afiz. Fixing Sunday as the date for the remand hearing, the court ordered Afiz to be sent to jail, the OC said.

Afiz was arrested in the early hours of Thursday from his home in the Islampur area of Burimari union.

Another accused arrested

Police have arrested another person for his alleged involvement with the lynching incident.

A joint team of Patgram police and Lalmonirhat DB Police arrested Helal Uddin, 32, on Saturday afternoon from the Burimari area. He will be produced before court on Sunday, said OC Omar.