Photojournalist Idris Ali in Sylhet, who was detained in blogger Ananta Bijoy Das killing case, was sent to jail yesterday after the end of a seven-day remand.
Farhana Yasmin, judge of Sylhet Metropolitan Magistrate Court 2, ordered to send the staff photojournalist of the daily Sabuj Sylhet, a local newspaper, to jail after police produced him before the court.
Abdullahel Baki, an official of Criminal Investigation Department’s organised crime unit, said the CID was verifying information obtained from Idris during remand.
“A team of the organised crime unit is now in Sylhet to cross-examine the information,” he said.
Sources said Idris, who was detained on June 7, was extensively grilled about Ananta’s killing at the CID office in Dhaka during remand.
He was quizzed about a photo taken right after the blogger’s killing, which was published in the newspaper he works at the following day.
Idris claimed he took the photo from Facebook but investigators found no evidence that could support his claim, which is a key reason why his involvement was suspected in the crime.
Investigators learned that Idris had arrived in a place very close to where Ananta was killed by assailants minutes before the crime was committed.
Idris initially denied that he went to the crime scene but later conceded that he did. He also told investigators that he first denied going there out of fear.
Son of Md Ilius Ali of Fatehgarh village in Sylhet Sadar upazila, Idris was recruited by the daily Sabuj Sylhet six months ago. The journalist got married on April 30.
On May 12 in the morning, blogger Ananta was hacked to death in Sylhet’s Subidbazar area.
A murder case was filed after the killing but police could not arrest anyone.
On May 25, the investigation was handed over to the CID’s organised crime unit.
