Former Bangladesh air force officer linked to Hasina escape video found dead

File photo: Former Bangladesh Air Force officer KM Tahsif Souri

DHAKA: A former Bangladesh air force officer, reportedly linked to a video purportedly showing Sheikh Hasina fleeing the country on Aug 5, 2024, has been found dead near a river in Dhaka, with police saying an inquest report has found no external injury marks, though blood was seen coming out from his nose.The body of former flight lieutenant Tahsif Souri (28) - "compulsorily retired" from service a year after the fall of Hasina govt - was recovered from Turag River Wednesday, a day after he went missing.Talking to reporters, home minister Salahuddin Ahmed said he would issue a comment after initial probe and autopsy findings. He did not comment when asked if Tahsif had shot the video.Police said Tahsif's body was sent for autopsy to Shaheed Suhrawardy Medical College.

His father KM Enayetul Karim Helal claimed an acquaintance, Dwip, took Tahsif out on Tuesday evening. "Tahsif sent his mother a message round 1:30am Wednesday, saying he would return home. But he never did" said Helal.During a podcast interview, Tahsif dismissed as propaganda a 2024 media report claiming he was an agent of the Indian intelligence agency RAW but neither confirmed nor denied when asked about his links to the video.

Tahsif's interview prompted the military's public relations directorate (ISPR) to reiterate its statement of Aug 4, 2025, denying reports that the action taken against Tahsif and flight lieutenant Rifat Ashrafi was related to reports of the officers recording and sharing of the video showing former PM Hasina fleeing.Ashraful Alam Khokan, an ex-aide of Hasina, asked, "Was Tahsif deliberately portrayed in the media as an agent of RAW with the intention of getting him killed? "At the time, however, his activities were reportedly aligned with those who seized power in July," he said, referring to Muhammad Yunus-led govt.