Three suspects identified

Investigators claim to have identified three suspected killers of writer-blogger Avijit Roy by examining photographs and video clips of Amar Ekushey Book Fair at Bangla Academy.

The photos of the three were shown to Zikrullah and Ariful Islam, who were caught by people and handed over to the police soon after the killing of online activist Oyasiqur Rahman Babu.

"Both the arrestees said they know the three," said a top investigator. "There may be a correlation between the two killings," he said, without disclosing the names.

The Detective Branch of police collected the photographs and the video clips from people and the Bangla Academy authorities that installed CCTV cameras on and around the book fair premises.

Avijit, a Bangladesh-born US citizen, and his wife Rafida Ahmed Bonya were hacked by unknown assailants on the Dhaka University campus while returning from the book fair on February 26.

Bonya, also a blogger and writer, was badly injured but Avijit died from his wounds, triggering outrage at home and abroad.

On March 2, Shafiur Rahman Farabi, who had issued repeated death threats to Avijit, was arrested by the Rab in the capital's Jatrabari. Farabi is known for his vitriolic campaigns against progressive and free-thinking bloggers in the social media and blogsphere.

Apart from this arrest, the detectives failed to make any progress in the investigation. They could not catch any other suspect, much to disappointment of Avijit's family and friends.

Investigators now claim the identification of the three suspects might lead to more arrests and eventually help resolve the murder case.

Barely a month after Avijit's killing, Oyasiqur Babu, 27 was hacked to death in the capital's Tejgaon Industrial area on March 30.

The two youths arrested for Oyasiqur murder are now on remand and being interrogated by detectives.

Investigators suspect that separate "sleeper cells" were behind the killing of Avijit and Oyasiqur. But they have no idea who recruited and trained the members.