Hindu family of four found dead inside locked home under 'mysterious circumstances' in Bangladesh

Four members of a Hindu family, including a retired schoolteacher and his two children, were found dead inside their locked home in Bangladesh’s Rangpur city, prompting police to open an investigation into what officials have described as suspicious deaths.

The victims were identified as retired teacher Pabitra Kumar Barman, 68, his wife Nirmala Rani Barman, 60, their daughter Trishna Rani Barman, 25, and their 12-year-old son Tushar Barman. Their bodies were recovered from their residence in the city's Darshana area on Saturday.

Police have not yet established a motive or publicly identified any suspects. Investigators are examining whether the family was killed during a robbery, while preliminary indications have also raised the possibility that the victims were strangled.

Phones switched off

Concern arose after relatives were unable to contact the family. Their mobile phones had reportedly been switched off, and attempts to reach them repeatedly went unanswered.

Relatives subsequently went to the house and found its gates locked. After gaining access to the property, the four family members were discovered dead inside.

Police were informed and officers reached the residence, secured the premises and began collecting evidence. The bodies were subsequently sent for post-mortem examinations to determine the precise cause and approximate time of death.

House found in disarray

Investigators said articles inside the home had been scattered, leading police to consider robbery as one possible explanation for the deaths.

Subir Chowdhury, an official with the Rangpur Metropolitan CID, said the condition of the house suggested that robbery could have been involved, but stressed that investigators were not yet in a position to confirm what had happened.

Police are examining whether valuables or other belongings were missing from the residence and whether the apparent disorder inside the house was linked to the killings.

The possibility of strangulation is also being investigated. Authorities are awaiting forensic and post-mortem findings before making a definitive statement about how the four family members died.

Investigation underway

Crime scene investigators are examining the house for physical and forensic evidence that could help reconstruct events before the deaths. Police are also expected to speak to relatives, neighbours and others who had recently been in contact with the family.

Investigators will seek to establish when the victims were last seen alive, whether anyone had visited the residence and why all four mobile phones were switched off.

Authorities have so far not said that the family's religious identity was a motive in the deaths. While the victims have been identified as Hindu, police have not announced evidence establishing a communal angle, and the circumstances remain under investigation.

Post-mortem key to probe

The autopsy findings are expected to play a crucial role in establishing whether all four victims died in the same manner and around the same time.

Investigators are also trying to determine whether the locked gates indicate that the assailant or assailants secured the property while leaving, or whether there is another explanation for the condition in which the house was found.

For now, police are keeping multiple possibilities open. The disordered belongings have strengthened suspicion of robbery, while indications of strangulation have turned the deaths into a potential multiple-homicide investigation.

Officials have said no conclusion will be reached until the forensic evidence, post-mortem reports and other material gathered from the house have been examined.