Who's Behind Opritom’s Murder? Five Forces Take to the Field to Uncover the Truth

Photo: Collected

News Desk: There is widespread concern over the murder of Ishayat Shahriar Opritom (13), son of a teacher at Comilla University. There is discussion that various factors may be behind the murder. It is believed that the drug syndicate and teenage gang in the Kotbari-Salmanpur area may be involved in the incident. There is also discussion that a group angered with Opritom’s mother over the theft of an iPhone may be involved.

Meanwhile, CCTV footage showing him being lured to the hills has been released. On the other hand, police, DB, CID, PBI and SRB have taken to the field to uncover the mystery behind the murder.

The investigation has revealed that Dr. Nahida Begum, an associate professor of the Department of Bengali at Comilla University, lived with her husband and only child Opritom in a rented house in the Kotbari Gandhamati area. In February-March 2025, she served as the university’s acting proctor for one month.

Locals said that on March 1, 2025, students detained eight teenagers from the Salmanpur area while they were taking drugs at the Central Shaheed Minar inside the university. Later, Proctor Nahida Begum handed them over to the police. At that time, the names of Salmanpur drug dealers Milon and Al Amin came up.

It is believed that the teenage gang and drug syndicate in the area may have been angry with her over the incident. Besides, it is believed that there may have been multiple reasons behind the murder, including the theft of Opritom’s valuable iPhone. Law enforcement agencies have said that several teenage gang members were involved in the murder.

The investigation found that on Friday, a teenage gang member named Tuhin first lured him to the hills by promising to take photographs. At that time, another teenager named Anas and several others were reportedly present there.

Sources said that a group of teenage gang members was believed to have been lying in wait there beforehand. He was allegedly suffocated and beaten to death in a planned manner. His iPhone and wallet were taken. Later, the killers left his body on a branch of a tree in the hills and fled.

Opritom’s body was recovered on Saturday afternoon from a jungle behind ‘Magic Paradise Park’ near Comilla University. Police detained a teenager named Tuhin on suspicion of involvement in the incident.

Meanwhile, students held a protest procession in the Comilla University campus area demanding justice for the sensational murder. Member of Parliament for Comilla-6 constituency Monirul Haque Chowdhury rushed to the scene to console the parents of the deceased.

Earlier, at around 3:30pm on Friday (September 18), Opritom left his home in the Kotbari area of Ward No. 24 under Sadar South Police Station with his mother’s iPhone to take photographs with his friends. He did not return home afterward. After failing to find him in various places, his father, K.M. Firoz Shahriar, filed a general diary (GD) at Sadar South Police Station that day.

Since his disappearance, police, along with his relatives, have been working to rescue Opritom. Police were reviewing his last known location and CCTV footage from areas around Comilla University.

The deceased Opritom’s mother, Dr. Nahida Begum, said, “I do not know why my only son was killed. I want justice for the killers.”

Comilla Police Superintendent Mohammad Anisuzzaman said several suspects were being questioned on suspicion of involvement in the murder. He said the mystery surrounding the much-discussed murder would be uncovered as soon as possible.

He said that several police teams took to the field immediately after Opritom went missing. Several important clues have been found in the murder. Whether the iPhone alone was behind the murder or whether there was another motive would be uncovered soon. Regardless of how many people are involved in the murder, all of them will be brought under the law.

Sadar South Police Station Officer-in-Charge (OC) Rakibul Islam said several people were being questioned on suspicion of involvement in the murder. Several people are in police custody. However, their names cannot be disclosed at this time in the interest of the investigation. The body was recovered and sent to the morgue of Comilla Medical College Hospital.

Abdul Kader Jilani, the first eyewitness to Opritom’s body, said, “We had come here to cut bamboo. I did not have a watch or a mobile phone with me. The time was approximately between 10:30 and 11:30. My son was telling me that someone was sleeping there. Looking carefully, I saw that there was an injury on his head. I became frightened. Then I informed the university.”

Comilla University Proctor Professor Abdul Hakim said that immediately after the incident, they contacted various units of the law enforcement agencies, including the police, DB, and Special Response Battalion (SRB). “But unfortunately, we could not find the boy alive. The iPhone belonging to his mother that he had with him was also not found.”

It is worth mentioning that Ishayat Shahriar Opritom was a seventh-grade student at Border Guard Public School. He was the only child of Dr. Nahida Begum, associate professor of the Department of Bengali at Comilla University, and K.M. Firoz Shahriar.