A brother and sister were found hanging in their rooms in what appears to be a suicide pact between them.
Sub-Inspector of Uttara West police station Nannu Khan said: “We found a notebook which had an English story titled 'The Departure.' The brother wrote that they were going to commit suicide.”
The story describes a life of sorrow and grief after their parents’ separation.
The teenagers' bodies were recovered yesterday from the flat they lived in with their single mother in Uttara.
Chirosree Zaman Munmun, 18, and her brother Md Alimuzzaman, 15, lived on the 5th floor of a building on Garib-e-Newaz avenue in Uttara sector 13.
Their mother, Joyshree Zaman, has been working at Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha (BSS) since 2009.
On Monday night, Joyshree spoke to her children over telephone around 9:30pm. When she returned two hours later, she found the hanging bodies of her children in two separate rooms locked from the inside.
Asking not to be named, a senior BSS colleague of Joyshree said: “Joyshree was a contractual employee and her job was not yet confirmed. She was depressed about this because her income was not enough for her family.”
“We never saw the siblings fight. The three of them have been living here for two months,” said their neighbour Rina.
The building's caretaker Mohammad Ilyas said: “Their father Alimul Haque lives in China with another wife and family. He occasionally sent expenses. Munmun did O-levels and Alim was in class 9 at a local school.
“No guest came in these two months. I did not see the children go to school in the last few days. Madam [Joyshree] was supposed to buy books for Alim Bhai [Tuesday]. The siblings used to go out to buy cigarettes, but I do not know if they were drug addicts.”
Police say the siblings were upset about their parents' divorce. Investigating officer of the case, Harun-ur-Rashid, told the Dhaka Tribune: “The sibling's parents were separated. Their quarrels and clashes in married life had a huge impact on the children's mental state. This could be the reason for their suicide.”
SI Nannu Khan said: “We recovered the bodies of the siblings just after midnight. An investigation is under way. A case of unnatural death was filed with the police station by Joyshree's cousin Habibuzzaman.”
Family members received the bodies after autopsies was conducted at Dhaka Medical College.
