The main suspects in the killing of Inqilab Mancha spokesperson Shahid Sharif Osman Hadi fled to India before they could be formally identified, Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) Additional Commissioner Md Nazrul Islam has said.

Briefing reporters on Sunday at the Minto Road headquarters on the progress of the investigation, Nazrul Islam said the suspects crossed the border and went into hiding in Tura area of India’s Meghalaya state soon after the incident. Indian police have detained two individuals there for allegedly assisting the fugitives, he added.

According to the DMP, police have so far arrested 11 people in connection with the case. Of them, six have given confessional statements before a court.

Nazrul Islam said the state and police are making all-out efforts to ensure justice and expressed optimism that a charge sheet would be submitted within the next seven to ten days.

Police, however, are yet to disclose details about the motive behind the killing or the alleged planners of the crime.

Osman Hadi was shot on December 12 while returning home by rickshaw. He was first taken to Dhaka Medical College Hospital and later shifted to Evercare Hospital as his condition deteriorated. 

He was subsequently flown to Singapore for advanced treatment, but succumbed to his injuries at Singapore General Hospital at around 9:30pm on December 18.