The woman whose bloodied body was found hanging in a bathroom at Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH) has been identified as Tanmoy Mondol, a senior staff nurse at BIRDEM General Hospital in Shahbagh. She had joined the hospital about a month ago.
The incident has taken a mysterious turn after a bloodstained fruit knife and bloodstains were found near the second gate of a conference room in the hospital’s administrative block several hours before her body was discovered.
Police and hospital authorities have launched an investigation to determine the actual cause of her death.
Shahbagh Police Station Officer-in-Charge (OC) Mohammad Moniruzzaman said on Monday afternoon that police had recovered the bloodstained knife and were investigating the circumstances surrounding the death.
Asked whether it was a murder, the OC said, “There are many mysteries surrounding the incident. We are trying to uncover them.”
He said the deceased had allegedly obtained a mobile SIM card using the national identity card of one of her friends, adding that police were investigating this and other possible leads.
Bloodstained knife adds to mystery
A few hours before the body was found, a bloodstained black steel fruit knife was discovered at around 6:30am in front of the second gate of the conference room in the hospital’s administrative block.
Cleaner Kashi Santosh was the first to spot the knife. He said he cleaned the bloodstained area on the instructions of a senior official, then washed the knife and kept it with him.
About four to five hours later, he learned that a body had been found in the bathroom between wards 110 and 111, although he did not see the woman himself.
DMCH Assistant Director Dr Shayla Ferdous Ahsan said she learned about the hanging body after arriving at the hospital in the morning. She later learned about the bloodstains and knife found near the conference room.
She said blood drops had been found in front of the conference room’s second gate. CCTV footage from the area is being reviewed and may provide important clues to the incident.
Police recovered the body at around 10:30am from cubicle No 4 of the women’s bathroom between wards 110 and 111 of DMCH.
Earlier, at around 10:00am, cleaner Mahmud Sheikh went to clean the bathroom as part of his routine duties. He knocked on the doors of the cubicles and asked the occupants to come out.
When there was no response from cubicle No 4 despite repeated knocking, he became suspicious. With the help of another cleaner, he opened the door and found the woman hanging inside, with blood on her body.
The cleaners then informed Ansar members and senior hospital officials, who subsequently notified Shahbagh police.
