A tragic and horrific incident has unfolded in Singra Upazila of Natore district, where an elderly woman was allegedly strangled to death by her second son following a domestic dispute. The victim, identified as 75-year-old Maria Begum, also known as Sharifa, was murdered because she sided with her eldest son during a family argument. Police have since arrested the perpetrator along with his son, who assisted in concealing the body.
Table of Contents
The Dispute and Murder
According to police sources, the conflict originated on Saturday, 23 May, in Agpara Sherkol village, under the Sherkol Union of Singra Upazila. An altercation broke out between the eldest brother, Shahidul Islam, and the second brother, Jonab Ali (55), regarding the digging of a pit for a toilet on the boundary line of their property. During the argument, their mother, Maria Begum, intervened and supported her eldest son, Shahidul Islam, based on logical grounds.
Jonab Ali did not take his mother’s intervention well. Harbouring deep resentment over the incident, Jonab Ali allegedly strangled his mother to death at approximately 21:00 on 25 May.
Concealment of the Body
Following the murder, Jonab Ali attempted to hide the crime by dumping his mother’s body into the very toilet pit that had caused the dispute, covering it with a concrete slab. Ten days later, on 4 June, as the body began to decompose and emit a strong stench, Jonab Ali took further measures to conceal the remains.
During the dead of night, he placed the body inside a sack and threw it into a water hyacinth-covered ditch near the house. In this act of disposing of the corpse, Jonab Ali was assisted by his 25-year-old son, Al Amin.
Timeline of Events
| Date | Event Description |
| 23 May | Dispute between Shahidul Islam and Jonab Ali over a toilet pit; Maria Begum sides with the eldest son. |
| 25 May (21:00) | Jonab Ali strangles Maria Begum to death and hides her body under a slab in the toilet pit. |
| 4 June | Decomposing body removed from the pit, placed in a sack, and thrown into a nearby ditch by Jonab Ali and Al Amin. |
| 6 June | The victim’s daughter, Morjina Begum, files a General Diary (GD) regarding her missing mother. |
| 9 June | Police retrieve the missing woman’s body from the ditch and send it to the morgue. |
Police Investigation and Official Briefing
The victim had been missing for a total of 15 days before the truth emerged. On 6 June, Maria Begum’s daughter, Morjina Begum, filed a General Diary (GD) at the Singra Police Station regarding her mother’s disappearance. Acting on this report, the police initiated an investigation and successfully recovered the sacked body from the ditch next to the suspect’s house on 9 June. The body was subsequently sent to the morgue for a post-mortem examination.
The recovery of the body caused a major stir in the locality. To unearth the facts, the police brought the four sons of the deceased, along with other relatives, to the police station for primary interrogation, during which the mystery behind the death was unveiled.
Details of the murder were disclosed to journalists during a press briefing held at 14:00 on Wednesday at the Singra Police Station premises. Mohammad Shariful Haque, the Superintendent of Police (SP) for Natore District, briefed the media. Other high-ranking officials present at the briefing included Noor Mohammad Ali, the Additional Superintendent of Police (Singra Circle), Rafiqul Islam, the Officer-in-Charge (OC) of Singra Police Station, and Shafiqul Islam, the Police Inspector (Investigation).
The Officer-in-Charge, Rafiqul Islam, confirmed that Morjina Begum has filed a formal murder case as the plaintiff. Law enforcement officials have arrested both Jonab Ali, for his direct involvement in the murder, and Al Amin, for his role in helping to conceal the corpse.