Mysterious death of elderly betel nut trader

The beheaded body of a 60-year-old man was found in an auto-rickshaw on Barisal-Pathorghata road yesterday.

The deceased, Habibur Rahman of Al-Falah village in Kathalia upazila, was a betel nut trader, Officer-in-Charge of Rajapur Police Station Shamsul Arefin said.

Locals spotted Habibur's body abandoned in the three-wheeler and informed the police, he said.

In the meantime, auto-rickshaw driver Hanif appeared at the police station but failed to describe how the incident occurred.

Hanif told police that after selling betel nuts in Cowkhali of Pirojpur, Habibur along with four others was returning home on his auto-rickshaw.

When they reached near Rajapur Jail, all of a sudden his rear seat passengers asked him to stop the auto saying Habibur had a cardiac arrest.

Soon after hearing a sound he turned back and saw, Habibur's beheaded body lying in the back seat and severed head on the front, Hanif said, adding that other passengers hurriedly fled the scene.

The OC said police got the identities of the other passengers from Hanif and were trying to arrest them.