Missing Jessore Police Officer Found Dead in Panchagarh After 22 Days

The mysterious disappearance of a Bangladeshi police officer has ended in tragedy, after his partially decomposed body was discovered more than three weeks later in the northern district of Panchagarh. The discovery has raised troubling questions and prompted a multi-agency investigation into the circumstances surrounding his death.

The deceased, Constable Akhtaruzzaman, had gone missing after taking official leave from his workplace and travelling to his family home in Chougachha, Jessore. On Thursday, 18 December, exactly 22 days after his disappearance, local residents stumbled upon a partially decomposed body lying in a sugarcane field in the Nine Mile area of Satmera Union under Panchagarh Sadar Upazila. Alarmed by the sight, they immediately alerted the police.

Officers from Panchagarh Sadar Police Station arrived at the scene and recovered the body. Due to the advanced state of decomposition, the identity of the deceased could not be established at the time, and the body was initially recorded as unidentified. It was only the following day, Friday 19 December, that the identity of the deceased was confirmed as Akhtaruzzaman.

Akhtaruzzaman, aged 46, hailed from Jamalta village in Chougachha Upazila of Jessore district. He was the son of the late Anichur Biswas and had been serving as a constable in the Bangladesh Police. At the time of his disappearance, he was posted at Rampal Police Station in Bagerhat district, under the Khulna Range.

According to police sources, Sub-Inspector Belal Hossain of Panchagarh Sadar Police Station played a key role in the identification process. Photographs of the clothing found on the body were collected and circulated among various police stations across the country, referencing general diaries (GD) filed in connection with missing persons. Later that afternoon, officers from Chougachha Police Station showed the images to Akhtaruzzaman’s family members, who confirmed his identity based on his clothing and personal belongings.

Speaking to reporters, the deceased officer’s brother-in-law, Mamunur Rashid, said the family recognised the body from the clothes and items found at the scene. “There is no doubt—it is my brother-in-law,” he stated, visibly shaken.

Panchagarh Sadar Officer-in-Charge Ashraful Islam said preliminary assessments suggest the death occurred two to three weeks prior to the recovery. However, due to the condition of the body, it is not yet possible to determine whether the death was the result of foul play or other causes. He confirmed that both the police and the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) would conduct a thorough investigation.

Chougachha Police Station’s Officer-in-Charge Rezaul Karim provided further background, noting that Akhtaruzzaman’s wife, Shahina Akhtar, had filed a general diary on 28 November. According to the complaint, the constable had taken five days’ leave on 26 November and arrived home the same day. On the morning of 27 November, he left the house saying he was travelling to Maheshpur, but never returned. Notably, he had left his mobile phone at home.

As investigators work to piece together the events that led to his death, the case has cast a sombre shadow over both his family and the police force, with many awaiting answers to the unanswered questions surrounding his final days.

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