Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Wales Online
Wales Online
National
Nathan Bevan

'No concrete evidence' that Cardiff father and son were poisoned in Bangladesh, says medic

A doctor who performed the initial postmortems on a Cardiff father and son who died in Bangladesh last month has said there is "no concrete evidence" to suggest they were poisoned. Rafiqul Islam, who was 51, and Mahiqul, 16, from the capital's Riverside area, were found unconscious in the north-eastern region of the city of Sylhet on Tuesday, July 26.

Police officers had to break into the building after relatives raised the alarm. However, the pair died whilst on their way to hospital.

There taxi driver Mr Islam's daughter, Samira, 20, is said to remain in a critical condition. His wife, Husnara, 45, and their eldest son, 24-year-old Sadiqul, are currently both believed to be out of danger.

Read more: Cardiff father and son dead and three other family members in hospital as police 'investigate poisoning'

The family were on a two-month visit to the country and were all found at the flat in which they were staying. Originally from Bangladesh, Mr Islam moved to the UK in the mid-1980s on the basis of his father's British citizenship.

"During the initial autopsy nothing was found," said Dr Shamsul Islam, countering the local police's earlier belief that deaths were "wrongful" and had been due to food poisoning. He also said there had been no signs of injury on either Mr Islam or his son - a pupil at Fitzalan High School - adding there was "no concrete evidence" at this stage as to the actual cause.

Mourners gather for the funeral of the Cardiff taxi driver and his son (PA)

According to the BBC, the toxicology report's findings may not be published for another two weeks. Meanwhile, a funeral for the two men took place in Bangladesh last Thursday.

Hundreds of people lined the streets of Sylhet for the ceremony, which took place at 1.30pm local time. Mr Islam's mother, Zarina Jobbar, along with two of his brothers and sister were among those in attendance.

A police investigation into the deaths remains ongoing. As yet no arrests have been made.

Read next:

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.