Parents assist criminals in killing daughter for Tk30 lakh

Eleven-year-old Elma Begum had to lose her life because of some people's greed for establishing supremacy in a village.

The murderers wanted to frame the murder on their rival group.

Pathetically, Elma's parents were paid to assist the killers in their daughter's gruesome killing. 

The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) of police resolved the mystery around the murder of the second-grader five years after the incident took place on March 28, 2015 in Narsingdi Sadar. 

While briefing the media at the CID headquarters in the capital yesterday, CID Deputy Inspector General Imtiaz Ahmed said there was a longstanding dispute between two groups over establishing supremacy in the village. 

One of the groups was led by a former Union Parishad member Bachchu Mia, while the other group was led by a person named Shajahan Bhuiyan. Elma's father Motaleb was a member of the Shajahan group.

Imtiaz Ahmed told reporters that it was a pre-planned murder. 

Apart from Elma's parents, her sister, brother-in-law, and cousin were also involved in the murder, he said, adding that her cousin Masum confessed to it on Sunday.

The CID deputy inspector general said Shajahan Bhuiyan along with Motaleb, Masum and other members of his group held a meeting at Shahjahan's house on the night of March 1, 2015. 

The meeting decided that they would kill someone and file a murder case against the members of the Bachchu group.

At the meeting, Motaleb agreed to kill his daughter Elma for Tk30 lakh.

As per their plan, on March 28, 2015 Elma's brother-in-law Babul gave her some money to buy food from a shop near their home. While the little girl was returning home from the shop, she was picked up by the murderers and taken to a paddy field where she was brutally beaten to death by seven people including her brother-in-law Babul and her cousin Masum. Her parents were also present at the scene.

Later, Motaleb filed a murder case against some identified and unidentified people, without naming the real culprits.

Imtiaz Ahmed said Abdul Motaleb first filed a case mentioning three names. He tried to change the names from the case document while the CID was investigating the murder. His attitude was suspicious.

The CID recently arrested Masum, who had been absconding since the murder. They learnt the details of the killing while interrogating him. 

The law enforcers later arrested four other people – her parents Abdul Motaleb and Mongoli Begum, Shajahan Bhuiyan, and a person named Baten, based on information given by Masum. 

Responding to a question, the CID deputy inspector general said Shajahan may have given Motaleb Tk4 lakh. 

"At least 12 people took part in the killing. We have arrested five of them and are trying to arrest the others," he said.