A British dad and his son have been found dead with the rest of their family unconscious after a suspected poisoning, whilst holidaying in Bangladesh. Police in the south Asian country discovered the family of five at a flat in the city of Sylhet in the east of the country.
Officers identified the father as Rafiqul Islam, a taxi driver in his 50s, who was found dead alongside his teenage son Michael, 16. Rafiqul’s wife Hosne Ara Islam, 40, their daughter Samira Islam, 19, and son Sadikul Islam, 21, were also found unconscious and are now being treated at a nearby hospital.
One of the surviving children is understood to be in a critical condition. The family are British citizens from the Riverside area of Cardiff and travelled to Bangladesh this month, according to WalesOnline.
The family’s elder son is called Sadiqul and he is 24 years old, according to UK records. Police have confirmed they came to Bangladesh on July 12 and that they moved into the flat where they were found on July 18.
District superintendent Uddin said it was believed the incident is a case of poisoning but an investigation into the incident is ongoing. He said: “After discussing the overall situation with the doctors and inspecting the scene we believe this may have been a case of poisoning.
“The investigation is ongoing into whether it is poisoning or something else.” He also confirmed that close relatives of the family lived in the same building, report Mirror Online.
Speaking to local media on Tuesday he said: “The other people in the building are close relatives of the victims. We questioned them.
“At the moment we believe they fell asleep after dinner last night. This must be investigated further. How were they poisoned? How did they die? We will be able to confirm after an investigation.”
After dinner on Monday, July 25, police say the family fell asleep in the same room. Between 10am and 10.30am on Tuesday their relatives tried to open the door to the flat.
They called the police when they heard no sounds inside. Police found the door locked, broke it open, and recovered the five unconscious victims inside. District superintendent Uddin said the investigation was continuing.
One neighbour of the family in Cardiff said: “My [family member] called me in the morning saying two passed and that three members of the family were in hospital.
“I thought maybe it had been an accident and then we heard something about poisoning. What happened is just speculation at the moment. It’s really sad.
“We’ve been living near them for more than 25 years. They are a quiet family who do their own thing. I couldn’t believe it, I’ve been getting so many phone calls. They were just a nice, neat family. They’ve been away for a couple of weeks.”
A second neighbour added: “I’m a taxi driver as well and I’ve known them around 20 years. I know [Rofikul] – he’s a really good guy. I found out on social media. We just thought they were going on holiday to Bangladesh.”
Labour councillor for Riverside Kanaya Singh, said: “Clearly this is a worrying and tragic event. Everyone I have spoken to in the community speaks very highly of the family and our thoughts are with them.
“There is also a great deal of concern because many people from Riverside go to Bangladesh on a regular basis. I hope that the authorities are able to get to the bottom of this as quickly as possible.”
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