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শনিবার, ১৮ জুলাই ২০২৬
৩ শ্রাবণ ১৪৩৩
৩ শ্রাবণ ১৪৩৩
Saturday, 18th July 2026
Former Bangladeshi Army Major Convicted in Zia Assassination Case Arrested After 45 Years in Hiding
18 July 2026 15:07 PM
NEWS DESK
Former Bangladesh Army Major (Retd.) Md. Mozaffar Hossain, who was sentenced to death in connection with the 1981 assassination of former President Ziaur Rahman and had remained a fugitive for more than four decades, has been arrested, according to Bangladesh's Detective Branch (DB) police.
Police said the arrest was carried out late Wednesday night in the Banani DOHS area of the capital after a lengthy surveillance operation.
According to DB officials, investigators traced the suspect through information related to his daughter's workplace at a private telecommunications company. Authorities said they monitored her movements for several months, eventually identifying a residence in Banani DOHS.
Investigators further claimed that an identifying birthmark beneath the suspect's nose helped confirm his identity after officers placed the house under surveillance.
Police said a plainclothes DB team approached the residence and identified themselves as employees from the daughter's office. When an elderly man came forward to ask why they had arrived so late, officers reportedly used the opportunity to observe his physical features.
According to investigators, the man identified himself as "Mozaffar" and said he was the woman's father. Police said they immediately arrested him after confirming his identity.
Convicted in Zia Assassination Case
According to court records cited by investigators, Mozaffar Hossain was among those convicted in connection with the assassination of President Ziaur Rahman during the failed military uprising at the Chittagong Circuit House on May 30, 1981.
Investigators alleged that he was one of the principal participants in the attack and played a direct role in the assassination. They also claimed that after the killing, he informed the then-General Officer Commanding (GOC) of the 24th Infantry Division, Major General Abul Manzoor, by telephone, saying, "The President has been killed."
Following the collapse of the uprising and the death of Major General Manzoor on May 31, 1981, Mozaffar reportedly fled Bangladesh. While several military officers were later sentenced by a court-martial, investigators said Mozaffar and another officer, Major S.M. Khaled, escaped across the border into India.
Years in Hiding
According to the DB, Mozaffar lived under an assumed identity while abroad, altering his appearance and severing ties with his previous social and family networks to avoid detection.
Investigators further alleged that he resided in different parts of India during the late 1990s and later travelled to several countries using forged identity documents and fraudulent passports, making it difficult for Bangladeshi authorities and Interpol to trace him.
Police said he eventually returned to Bangladesh and quietly settled in Banani DOHS, where he allegedly lived as a retired civilian without attracting attention from neighbors.
Handed Over to the Army
Speaking about the legal process, Dhaka Metropolitan Police Detective Branch Additional Commissioner Shafiqul Islam said Mozaffar Hossain was a former military officer who had been convicted by a court-martial and remained a fugitive.
He said that after the completion of the required legal formalities, the suspect was handed over to the Bangladesh Army to proceed under the applicable military judicial process.
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