The Murder of Afroza Sultana

Afroza Sultana was found murdered at her residence in Middle Badda, Dhaka, on March 13, 2022. Her brother filed a murder case the following day. Detective Branch investigators focused on Hridoy Bepari, also reported as Hridoy Mia or Hriday Bepari, who had worked as a driver connected to Afroza for years. The investigation produced a combination of surveillance, recovered objects, forensic material and a confession, and the case reached judgment more than four years later.

Afroza Sultana

Contemporary reporting identified Afroza as a deputy manager in the MIS department of Seven Circle Bangladesh Limited. She was at home when the attack occurred. The crime was investigated as both a killing and a theft of cash and gold jewellery.

Afroza is the focus of this dossier rather than the sensational details of the manner of death. The public record provides enough evidence and procedural history to explain what happened without reproducing graphic material.

The investigation

Detective Branch officers said CCTV footage helped them identify Hridoy Bepari. He was arrested shortly after the killing. Investigators said that, following information he provided, they recovered a knife, stolen gold jewellery, cash and other items that had been concealed after the crime.

The later prosecution record cited CCTV footage, a confession, forensic findings, post-mortem evidence and a Criminal Investigation Department DNA report. Hridoy also gave a confessional statement before a magistrate under Section 164 of Bangladesh's Code of Criminal Procedure, according to reporting on the judgment.

The prosecution's motive theory

The prosecution said Hridoy had lost money through online gambling and accumulated debt. Its case was that he targeted Afroza's valuables in an effort to obtain money and killed her during the robbery.

That motive is presented here as the prosecution and court record described it. It is not necessary to embellish it with psychological assumptions about Hridoy beyond what the evidence and judgment support.

Charge sheet and trial

Detective Branch Sub-Inspector Md Ripon Uddin submitted the charge sheet on March 31, 2023. The trial court framed charges in October 2023. Reporting on the final judgment stated that the court heard testimony from 12 of 26 prosecution witnesses.

On July 29, 2026, Judge Mohammad Moin Uddin Chowdhury of Dhaka's Third Additional Metropolitan Sessions Judge's Court found Hridoy guilty of Afroza's murder. The court imposed the death penalty and a fine.

The judge's observations, as reported by The Business Standard, emphasized the breach of trust involved in an employee killing an employer and referred to the motive, CCTV evidence, recovered material and forensic findings when explaining the sentence.

What the judgment establishes

The July 2026 decision is a criminal conviction by a trial court. Hridoy is therefore accurately described as convicted in this dossier. At the same time, this page does not describe the trial judgment as though all possible appellate review has necessarily concluded; no later final appellate disposition was located in the sources reviewed through September 3, 2026.

This distinction matters especially in a capital case. “Solved / adjudicated at trial” records that a court has determined guilt while keeping the procedural status precise.

Timeline

1. March 13, 2022
   Afroza is killed

   Afroza Sultana is murdered at her home in Middle Badda, Dhaka.

2. March 14, 2022
   Murder case filed

   Afroza's brother files a case with Badda Police Station.

3. March 2022
   Driver arrested

   Detective Branch investigators identify and arrest Hridoy Bepari after reviewing surveillance material and other evidence.

4. March 31, 2023
   Charge sheet submitted

   The Detective Branch submits its charge sheet against Hridoy.

5. October 2023
   Trial formally opens

   The court frames the charge and begins the trial process.

6. July 29, 2026
   Guilty verdict

   A Dhaka court convicts Hridoy Bepari of murder and sentences him to death.

Current status

Solved / adjudicated at trial. Hridoy Bepari was convicted on July 29, 2026, of murdering Afroza Sultana and received a death sentence from the trial court. This dossier does not claim a final appellate disposition that was not documented in the sources reviewed.