A Comilla court has granted a three-day remand to Senior Warrant Officer Hafizur Rahman in connection with the murder of college student Sohagi Jahan Tonu, marking the first arrest in the case nearly 10 years after her killing and prompting her parents to express hope for justice.
Tonu’s mother, Anwara Begum, said she now believes the long-running case may finally move forward towards accountability.
“After 10 years, one accused has been caught. So I am hoping that this time I will get justice. The way they killed my daughter, I want them to be punished in the same way. I want them to be hanged. I also want the people of the country to be able to say that they were hanged for Tonu’s murder,” she said.
Tonu’s father, Md Yaar Hossain, also expressed relief after seeing an accused produced before the court.
“We are very happy. We saw one accused being arrested and brought to the dock. A seven-day remand was sought. I want justice, and the people of the country also want justice,” he told the court.
Judge Mominul Haque of Comilla Senior Judicial Magistrate Court-1 granted the three-day remand, according to Police Bureau of Investigation (PBI) Inspector Tarikul Islam, the investigating officer of the case.
Court sources said Hafizur Rahman was arrested from his residence earlier and produced before the court for the remand hearing.
On April 6, the seventh investigating officer in the case sought court permission for DNA sample matching of three suspects — then Comilla Cantonment Sergeant Zahid, Warrant Officer Hafizur Rahman and soldier Jahangir, also known as Zahid — which the court approved.
In 2017, the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) said DNA testing of samples collected from Tonu’s clothes had found genetic material from three men, though the identities of those tested were not disclosed.
Tonu, a student of Comilla Victoria Government College and theatre activist, went missing on March 20, 2016, after leaving home to tutor at a house inside Comilla Cantonment. Her body was later recovered from a bush near the cantonment power house.
Her father filed a case the following day with Comilla Kotwali Model Police Station, alleging murder and rape by unidentified individuals.
Two post-mortem examinations conducted by Comilla Medical College Hospital on April 4 and June 12, 2016, failed to determine the cause of death.