A court in Dhaka has set November 15 for the verdict in the murder case of model Syeda Tania Mahbub Tinni who was murdered almost 19 years ago. Dhaka’s 7th Additional District Sessions Judge Keshab Roy Chowdhury’s court fixed the new date on Tuesday.
On the day, the verdict in the case was scheduled to hand over, however, the prosecution again appealed for arguments. The court then fixed November 15 for re-verdict.
The main accused in the case is former MP Golam Faruq Ovi. In July 2010, the court indicted Ovi with the murder.
On November 10, 2002, Tinni’s body was found under China-Bangladesh Friendship Bridge over the Buriganga River and a case was filed with Keraniganj police station the same day by the then SI Md. Shafi Uddin. The then SI of the police station Md. Qayyum Ali Sardar was the first investigation officer in the case.
When the picture of Tinni’s body was published in the newspaper, a relative named Sujan identified her body as model Tinni. The case was later handed over to the CID on November 24, 2002. The then CID inspector Fazlur Rahman was given the responsibility of the investigation.
Later, CID Inspector Sujaul Haque, Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Golam Mostafa, ASP Arman Ali, ASP Kamal Krishna Bharadwaj and ASP Mozammel Haque took charge of the investigation. The latest investigation officer Mozammel Haque filed the chargesheet in court.
41 people were named as witnesses in the chargesheet in the Tinni murder case. Besides, 22 clues were seized in this case.
Following the incident, police arrested Tinni’s former husband Shafakat Ahmed Pial and four others — Swapan Gazi, Gazi Sharifullah Tapan, Shafiqul Islam Jewel and Somnath Saha Bappy.
However, when the Criminal Investigation Department pressed charge against Ovi in November 2008, it dropped Pial and the others.
Investigators said Ovi killed Tinni to hide his “illicit relationship” with her under wraps. According to the chargesheet, Ovi murdered her when she became persistent in her demand to give her social recognition through marriage.
Soon after the murder, Ovi moved to Canada after securing bail and challenging a 1992 trial court verdict, which sentenced him to 17 years in jail in an arms case, says the chargesheet filed with the court.
The International Police Organization (Interpol) issued a red notice in 2007 against Golam Faruq Ovi, accused in the sensational Tinni murder case. However, even after 14 long years, Interpol could not inform the Bangladesh Police Headquarters about his whereabouts. The latest re-petition on January 1, 2017, Interpol issued a red notice agasint Ovi on February 2 of the same year which will remain in force until 2022.
