'Conspirator may have escaped to US': Bangladesh detective chief to collaborate with Interpol to probe MP Anar murder case

NEW DELHI: In a significant development regarding the murder case of Bangladesh Member of Parliament (MP) Anwarul Azim Anar, the primary suspect, Akhtaruzzaman, might have escaped from Kathmandu to the US via Dubai, said chief of the Bangladesh detective department, Harun-or-Rashid.
Harun-or-Rashid told about the plans to collaborate with Interpol and the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) to improve efforts in arresting the suspect.He highlighted the urgency of locating Akhtaruzzaman for legal proceedings due to the severity of the crime and its international implications.
"The main conspirator Akhtaruzzaman may have escaped from Kathmandu to the US via Dubai...We are trying to trace him through Interpol. We will go to the CID office. We will have a meeting with the officers of CID. We will try to interrogate the arrested accused so that we can get more information," he told reporters upon landing at Kolkata airport on Sunday.
The disturbing details surrounding Anar's murder, occurring shortly after his arrival in Kolkata, have rattled investigators. Allegedly, his body was chopped in a Kolkata apartment, and the remains were disposed of using multiple plastic bags.
A team of Bangladeshi detectives has been dispatched to India to investigate the matter further.
"We just landed here. You all know that in our criminal Act, there is a section called Extra Territorial Offence, which means that if an individual commits a crime outside Bangladesh, we, under this Extra Territorial Offence section, can investigate those crimes," said Harun-or-Rashid.
He also stressed the importance of examining the crime scene and scrutinizing CCTV footage to gather crucial evidence.
Addressing the press, he elaborated on the complexities of the case, saying, "You all know one of our popular parliamentarians Anwarul Azim Anar was heinously murdered and his body was cut into pieces. The mastermind of this murder, the beneficiary and those who executed the plans, all are Bangladeshi. The murder plot was planned in Bangladesh. Now our main work is to take forward the investigation."
Meanwhile, the West Bengal Criminal Investigation Department (CID) has initiated a search operation to recover Anar's body parts. One suspect, a Mumbai-based butcher, confessed to his involvement in dismembering the MP's body under the direction of Akhtaruzzaman.
Police said, "The assailants brought a butcher named Jihad (alias Siam) who was living in Mumbai illegally for many years. Two months ago, he was brought to Kolkata by an American citizen of Bangladesh origin, Akhtaruzzaman Shaheen. This Shaheen is the mastermind of this planned heinous murder."
Akhtaruzzaman Shaheen, the alleged mastermind, purportedly orchestrated Anar's murder with the assistance of four other Bangladeshi nationals.
"Then they removed all the flesh from the body in the flat and minced it to destroy his identity and then they put everything in a polythene packs. They also chopped the bones into small pieces. They then took those packets out of the flat and dropped them around Kolkata and surrounding areas using different modes of transport," the police said in a statement on Thursday.
In response to these developments, a Special Investigation Team (SIT) has been established to delve deeper into the intricacies of the case. Bangladesh home minister Asaduzzaman Khan confirmed Anar's demise and announced the arrest of three individuals linked to the murder.
(With inputs from agencies)