Ukhiya, Oct 27 (V7N) – The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) of Bangladesh Police has identified all 10 people who died in a fire at TupTup Restaurant and Resort in Patuartek, Ukhiya, Cox’s Bazar, through DNA testing. However, no remains matched the DNA sample of missing schoolteacher Nasrin Akter Mukta, 27, leaving her whereabouts unknown.
Sub-Inspector Rimon Ghosh of Ukhiya Police Station, the investigation officer in the case, said on Monday night that the bodies of the 10 victims would be handed over to their families on Tuesday, October 27.
The identified victims included members of two families from Dhaka.
The first family comprised Mohammad Nahidur Rahman, 41, his wife Afsana Matin, 36, and their two daughters, Rozaina Inaya, 9, and Munaina Ihana, 6.
The second family included Moulita Mehzabin Alvi, 19; Laila Jahan Nabila, 25; Israt Jahan Maliha, 27; Faria Kabir, 33; her son Mohammad Faizan Noor, 6; and her brother Mohammad Nafis Tehami, 24. They were residents of the Banasree and Khilgaon areas of Dhaka.
Mukta was a teacher at Swapnabilash Niribili School in Ashulia, Dhaka. She went to Cox’s Bazar for a trip with two friends and went missing after the fire.
Her husband, Dewan Faisal, said Mukta was trapped inside a room at the resort when the fire broke out. Her two friends managed to get out, but Mukta could not be found.
The fire broke out on the morning of October 17 at the three-storey resort near Patuartek Beach along the Marine Drive. Ten people died in the incident, while seven others received hospital treatment for their injuries.
The inclusion of 11 people on the initial missing-persons list raised questions about the discrepancy between the number reported missing and the number of confirmed deaths. The failure to match Mukta’s DNA with any of the recovered bodies has left her case unresolved.
Police have filed a case against 23 people in connection with the incident, naming resort owner Mohammad Tanvir Sultan Mia as the prime accused. Police said he and another owner, Newaz Morshed, had been absconding since the fire.
A seven-member committee formed to investigate the fire has yet to submit its report.
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