Amit Muhuri, slayer of friends, a politically influenced criminal who has repeatedly escaped the long arm of the law, is once again behind bars.
His modus operandi of disposing of his last victim – his bosom buddy Imranul Karim Emon – appears to have been inspired by the acclaimed TV series Breaking Bad. The TV show depicted various criminals disposing bodies by trying to melt them using acid baths in drums. Amit chopped up Emon into pieces and tried the same method on him.
According to Chittagong Metropolitan Police (CMP), the port city pariah stands accused in a total of 13 cases with different police stations including, three counts of murder, extortion, assault on police, arms and narcotics.
Rise to notoriety
The eldest of two sons of Arun Muhuri, Amit is a resident of Raozan upazila in Chittagong. He sat for his HSC examinations in 2010. Afterwards, he got involved in criminal activities and formed a criminal ring of his own.
He first came to prominence after a double murder in the city's CRB area. Two people, including an eight-year-old boy, were killed during a gunfight between Jubo League and BCL activists over a railway tender on June 24, 2013.Political affiliations
Amit identified himself as a Jubo League leader and is known to be a follower of Central Jubo League leader Helal Akbar Chowdhury Babor.
During a press briefing at the CMP headquarters on September 4, CMP Deputy Commissioner (South) SM Mostain Hossain said: “Amit Muhuri is one of our most wanted criminals. He may use his political affiliation as leverage, but will not get away scot-free.”
Despite repeated attempts, Helal Akbar could not be reached over his mobile phone for comments.The house of torment in Nandankanon
Amit rented a flat at Tk20,000 on Harish Dutta Lane of Nandankanon area in Chittagong in March 2017.
He lived with his wife Chaity on the fifth floor of the six-storey building “Bengal Holding.” The quiet flat concealed its true nature – a house of pain and torment.
Neighbours in the building allege they would hear people cry out in the dead of the night. Many allege Amit would bring people in and torture them for money.
Wishing anonymity, several residents in Nandankanon said that nobody could buy any flats in the area without first paying Amit.
He used to collect toll from the businessmen of Cinema Palace, DC Hill, Laldighi, Reazuddin Bazar and New Market areas. None dared to complain to the police fearing his reprisal.
“We have learned from the locals that Amit used the flat as a torture cell. We are investigating the allegations with all seriousness,” said AC Jahangir Alam.
“There was nothing we could do about the torture cell before because nobody filed any complaints with the police,” said Sub-Inspector Harunur Rashid with the Kotwali police station who is also the investigation officer of the Emon murder case.The murderer with a track record of getting away
The 2013 double murder in CRB over the railway tender finally led to Amit’s arrest on November 5, 2015. He was released on bail promptly.
On April 28, he was seen firing a pistol in broad daylight in Jhautala on April 28 of this year. The police arrested him on May 25. But after just a month, he walked out of prison on bail on June 26.
There are many more counts of him getting arrested and getting out on bail – a scenario which is shockingly similar to a swivel door.
Advocate Akhtar Kabir Chowdhury, a lawyer, told the Dhaka Tribune that people like Amit are able to receive bail easily because evidence is not filed properly.
But the police argue that this is not their fault. CMP Assistant Commissioner Jahangir Alam said: “There are many variables in a bail. The role of the police in obtaining bail is very insignificant.”
“All relevant references of his previous cases will be affixed to the current case. Whenever he tries to procure bail, his previous records will be brought to light,” said DC Mostain.Disposing a body, Breaking Bad-style
On the night of August 9, Amit called his friend Emon to his house in Nandankanon of the port city. He suspected Emon of having an affair with his wife Chaity. Without any preamble, he, along with several of his goons, killed Emon by strangling and stabbing him simultaneously.
As the bloodied, mangled corpse of Emon lay at their feet, Amit thought how best to dispose of the body. His idea was to put the body in a drum filled with acid and base to break down the body so that there would be no remains to discover.
The hit TV show Breaking Bad depicted a chemistry teacher adopting the same method on various occasions. But Amit was no chemistry teacher, and neither was he any good at chemistry, if his plan was any indicator. His ignorance of the fact that base neutralises acid prevented the body from decomposing.
When Amit and his lackeys opened the drum the next day to look into it, they were welcomed by Emon’s body soaked in a neutralised liquid agent.
Furious and flustered, he attempted to cut the body into pieces, but it had hardened due to chemical reactions.
His final recourse was to put the body in another drum, fill it with cement and dump it in a lake.
The drum was recovered on August 13. Police could not identify the concrete-wrapped body and began investigating. The investigation led to two of Amit’s cohorts who identified the victim as Emon and implicated Amit in the crime.
Then, the manhunt began.
Amit had the foresight of fleeing the city right after disposing of the body. He had fled to the neighbouring district of Comilla to evade the law enforcement agencies while the heat wore off.
He shaved his face and head in order to disguise himself. To further throw law enforcement off his track, Amit admitted himself to a drug rehabilitation centre. But on September 2, the police finally caught up to him. Although they were initially sceptical about his identity, it was his name tattooed on his neck that gave Amit away.Confessing to the crime
Amit gave a confessional statement under Section 164 of Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) saying Emon used to stalk his wife Chaity and was having an extramarital relationship with her.
AC Jahangir Alam told the Dhaka Tribune that Amit is a cold-blooded murderer.
“He killed a close friend and then kept the body inside a drum for four days in his house. And then he planned on destroying it with acid. That is not possible for an ordinary murderer,” the AC said.
