Prime Suspect Held in Khulna University Student Killing

Bangla Press Desk: Members of the Special Response Battalion (SRB) on Tuesday arrested the prime accused in a case over the killing of North Western University student Md Azmul Hossain in Khulna.

The arrestee is Hasan Habib Rifat, 30, a former student of Khulna University and son of Monowar Hossain of Sirajganj district.

Acting on a tip-off, a joint team of SRB-6 and SRB-8 conducted a drive in the Kuriana Adabari area of Nesarabad upazila in Pirojpur district and arrested Rifat around 2:30 am.

Rifat had been on the run since the incident, said an SRB press release.

Rifat confessed to his involvement in the killing, it said.

Later, Rifat was handed over to Harintana Police Station.

Earlier on Friday, Azmul was beaten at a mess on Islamnagar Road, opposite Khan Jahan Ali Hall of Khulna University, after being accused of theft.

At one stage, he fell from the roof of the four-storey building.

He was taken to Khulna Medical College Hospital in critical condition around 1:30 am on Saturday, where he died.

A murder case was filed against four students of Khulna University (KU) and 20-25 other unidentified people over the death.

However, the names of the four accused could not be known immediately.

Police and local sources said Azmul, a first-year student of the English Department at NWU in Sonadanga, ate at the mess on Friday night without paying for the meal, which led to an altercation.

Several students of the mess and some locals later accused him of theft and beat him mercilessly.

He was subsequently taken to the rooftop, where he was allegedly beaten further. His hair was also cut.