A 17-year-old boy named Rakib was allegedly killed in the capital before his body was wrapped in a carton, transported to Nilphamari’s Dimla and buried, police said. The main suspect, identified as Mamun, is also accused of staging a false kidnapping after the killing and allegedly using an artificially generated video to convince Rakib’s family that he was still alive and demand a ransom.
A Dhaka investigation team recovered Rakib’s decomposed body from Balapara village in Chhatnai Union of Dimla upazila on Monday afternoon. The body was found buried at a location identified by Mamun during questioning following his arrest.
Rakib was the son of Khademul Islam of Uddampur Dakshinpara in Gopalpur upazila of Tangail. According to the preliminary investigation, Rakib and Mamun had become acquainted about a month before the incident. Police suspect that a dispute subsequently developed between the two and that Rakib was killed following the disagreement. The exact circumstances surrounding the alleged killing are still being investigated.
After the death, Mamun allegedly wrapped Rakib’s body in a carton and transported it to Balapara, his own village in Dimla. He is accused of burying the body there in an attempt to conceal the killing before returning to Dhaka.
Once back in the capital, Mamun allegedly told Rakib’s family that the teenager had been kidnapped. He then demanded a substantial ransom and managed to obtain some money from the family, according to the allegations.
Investigators are also examining a particularly unusual aspect of the case: the alleged use of artificial intelligence to create a fake video designed to make Rakib appear to be alive. The video was reportedly used to mislead the family and strengthen the kidnapping story. Police have yet to establish the precise circumstances in which the video was produced or used, and the allegation remains part of the ongoing investigation.
The case began to unravel after Rakib’s family raised the matter with police. Acting on their complaint, investigators arrested Mamun in the capital’s Shukrabad area. During questioning, he allegedly provided information that led the investigation team to Dimla.
Following the information obtained from the suspect, the team conducted an operation in Balapara village on Monday. They recovered the buried carton containing Rakib’s decomposed remains and began the formal process of securing evidence related to the case.
The condition of the body meant that a post-mortem examination was necessary to establish the cause and circumstances of death. The remains have been sent for autopsy, and investigators are expected to rely on the medical findings alongside other evidence collected during the investigation.
Ashraful Alam, officer-in-charge of Dimla Police Station, confirmed the recovery and said the body had been sent for a post-mortem examination. He said further legal procedures would be taken after the examination. Once those procedures are completed, Mamun will be handed over to the Dhaka investigation team.
The investigation is now focused not only on the alleged killing and concealment of the body but also on the subsequent ransom demand and the reported use of AI-generated material. Investigators will need to establish the sequence of events, the motive behind the killing and whether the digital material was deliberately created and used as part of the alleged deception.
