The two deceased siblings who were initially thought to have died from food poisoning in the capital’s Banasree, might have actually been strangled to death, autopsy findings suggest.
Nusrat Jahan, 14, and Alvi Aman, 6, died at Dhaka Medical College Hospital on Monday night, hours after they ate food bought from a Chinese restaurant.
DMC forensic department Lecturer Dr Prodeep Biswash, who conducted autopsies of the siblings, told journalists that both children had injury marks on their throats. Nusrat also had blood in her eyes and Alvi had injury marks on one of his legs.
However, the cause of death can only be confirmed after result from the viscera test comes in, the doctor added.
Prof Dr Habibuzzaman Chowdhury of the DMC forensic medicine department said a viscera report would show what chemical reactions had been taking place inside the children’s stomach before their death and confirm whether or not they had died from food poisoning.
Meanwhile, law enforcers detained seven suspects in connection with the deaths of the children.
On late Monday night, police arrested Masud Rahman, the manager of Kent Chinese Restaurant from where the food was bought, the restaurant’s head chef Asaduzzaman Rony and his associate Ataur Rahman, said Inspector (investigation) Mostafizur Rahman of Ramna police station.
Rapid Action Battalion also detained three more people: Obaidur, a relative of Nusrat and Alvi; Sheuly, the private tutor of the children; and Pintu Mondol and Ferdous, two security guards of the building the children lived in.
RAB sources said they were detained for interrogation yesterday afternoon.
No case was filed with the police station concerned as of yesterday evening.
The bodies of Nusrat and Alvi were taken to Jamalpur yesterday for burial.
Earlier, their mother Mahfuza Malek Jesmin said the family had brought home leftover food after having dinner on Saturday night at a Chinese restaurant near their Banasree home.
The mother served the leftover Chinese food to her two children for lunch on Monday while she and her husband had a home-cooked meal.
Both children were rushed to the Dhaka Medical College Hospital after the mother noticed that they were not waking up from an afternoon nap.
DMCH doctors said the children had already died before they arrived at the hospital.