DNA ambiguity obscures Sagar-Runi killers: Task force

The murder of Journalist couple Sagar Sarowar and Meherun Runi was carried out by two individuals, but they have not been identified due to the ambiguity of DNA evidence, according to a report from the investigative task force formed 12 years after the incident.

The report also revealed that they were not murdered due to any official or professional reasons.

The task force submitted its report to the High Court on April 22. Details of the report were revealed on May 3 in a broadcast by a private television channel of the country.

The shocking murder occurred on the night of February 11, 2012. Over the years, several agencies including police, Detective Branch (DB), and Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) handled the investigation. Most recently, the Police Bureau of Investigation (PBI) was assigned the case, but despite over a hundred extensions, no agency had managed to submit a conclusive report.

After the fall of Sheikh Hasina government, the investigation was handed over to a newly formed task force, which questioned 12 individuals, including seven journalists.

The report states that the task force found no evidence suggesting the murder was due to marital conflict, theft, or professional issues. The viscera report also did not reveal the presence of sedatives or any toxic substances.

According to the investigation, both Sagar and Runi returned home at night and were murdered between 3:00 a.m. and 5:00 a.m. The report confirms that no one was present in the apartment before their return, and there were no signs of forced entry. A broken section in the kitchen balcony, measuring 14.5 inches by 8.5 inches, appeared to be freshly damaged and could have been used for entry and exit. However, no clear footprints were found in the area.

The task force concluded that two individuals were involved in the killing, using a knife and a cleaver from the kitchen. Both victims survived for a while after being wounded. Based on DNA test results, the report notes that Sagar was stabbed first, followed by Runi. Sagar’s hands and feet were tied, likely because the attackers assumed he might resist. Runi was not tied, possibly due to a perception of her being physically weaker. Blood pattern analysis initially suggested Runi died first, but scientific calculations later led the task force to determine that Sagar died after her.

The task force collaborated with Criminal Investigation Department (CID) for DNA analysis but failed to identify the perpetrators. The report explains that while DNA profiles from two or three individuals can be distinguished, it becomes difficult with more than that. The samples collected from the crime scene contained DNA from five to six individuals, making identification impossible.

Four DNA profiles were found at the scene—three male and one female. Two of those profiles belong to Sagar and Runi, but the other two could not be identified. As a result, neither the motive nor the identities of the killers could be clearly determined.

The report also mentions that evidence at the crime scene was compromised. Detectives arrived at the apartment between 10:30 a.m. and 11:00 a.m. the next day, by which time media personnel and locals had trampled much of the physical evidence.

Speculation has circulated that the murder may have been linked to professional or official matters. However, the task force examined Runi’s office documents and found no signs of enmity. It also found no evidence connecting the murder to Runi’s reporting on the controversial Bibiyana gas field or to any content published on Sagar’s news portal.

On the night of February 11, 2012, Sagar Sarowar, then news editor at Maasranga Television, and Meherun Runi, a reporter for ATN Bangla, were murdered in their rented apartment in West Rajabazar, Dhaka. Their only son, Megh, was in bed with them at the time of the murder.

Following the incident, Runi’s brother Nawshad Alam filed a case at Sher-e-Bangla Nagar Police Station. Despite national outcry and repeated promises of justice, the case remains unsolved over a decade later.