Five skeletons were stolen from a family graveyard in Gazipur's Sreepur upazila in a single night.
A gang of thieves reportedly dug up five graves in the graveyard and made off with the remains on Friday night near Pramanik Bari, adjacent to Telihati High School in Telihati union, according to local sources.
Local resident Ashraful Islam Rajib said that on Saturday morning, he noticed disturbed soil in the graveyard while walking by.
Upon closer inspection, he found five graves dug up. Relatives were alerted and discovered that the graves were empty, with no traces of bodies or skeletons remaining.
The stolen skeletons were identified as those of Ali Hossain, his wife, Halima; Shahjahan, Tanoy Khan, and Abul Hossain Dollar.
Just three days prior, skeletons had also been stolen from the graves of Alem Mridha, Hriday Mridha, and Shiro Mridha at a neighbouring family graveyard of Mridha Bari.
Iqbal Sarkar, member of Ward 2 in Telihati Union Parishad, confirmed receiving news of the theft from the Pramanik family graveyard early Saturday. He visited the site and found five graves dug up. Sreepur police later arrived at the scene to investigate.
The incident has sparked significant concern among residents. Many family members expressed anger and sorrow, calling the skeleton theft "deeply distressing."
They said that incidents of this nature are unprecedented in the area and have created widespread fear among locals.
Sreepur police station Officer-in-Charge (OC) Zainal Abedin Mandal said that he was informed of the grave desecration through a local health inspector.
"Police have visited the scene, and efforts are underway to locate those involved in the theft," he said, adding that no formal complaint has yet been filed.
"Legal action will be taken once a complaint is lodged," OC Mandal said.
