iPhone obsession emerges in Opratim killing
The killing of 13-year-old Ishayat Shahriar Opratim over an iPhone has highlighted the growing risks surrounding the misuse of mobile phones among teenagers, with police saying three youths allegedly planned to snatch the device before beating him to death.
Opratim, son of Comilla University Bangla department teacher Dr Nahida Begum, was allegedly taken into a forested area of Lalmai hill in the Sananda area on Friday, where the suspects attempted to take his mother’s iPhone from him.
When he resisted, a scuffle broke out and three of the youths allegedly struck him on the head with a bamboo stick, killing him on the spot.
Police have arrested three suspects – Saiful Islam Tuhin, 19, Mozammel Hossain Fahad, 15, and Md Kamrul Hasan, 18 – for their alleged direct involvement in the killing.
Another person, Siam, has also been detained over alleged involvement in the incident.
Comilla Superintendent of Police Md Anisuzzaman disclosed the details at a press briefing on Sunday afternoon.
According to the police, Tuhin had allegedly planned to snatch the iPhone and took Opratim to the forest in Lalmai on Friday.
The three suspects allegedly attacked him when he resisted the attempt to take the phone.
The Home Affairs Minister Salahuddin Ahmed said four suspects had been arrested within 12 hours of the killing and assured that the case would be brought to trial swiftly, as he had pledged in the killing of another child, Ramisa.
Speaking at a briefing on current affairs at the Secretariat on Sunday afternoon, the minister said those arrested had confessed to the killing.
“The nation is grief-stricken by this tragic incident,” he said, adding that the child had become involved with a delinquent teenage gang.
The SP said police launched the investigation after Opratim’s father, KM Firoz Shahriar, filed a general diary.
Investigators found that Tuhin, Fahad and Kamrul had been in regular contact with Opratim and often spent time with him.
Police said Opratim had previously gone out with the youths, carrying his mother’s iPhone, to socialise, take photographs and spend time together.
Anisuzzaman said the investigation indicated that the suspects were motivated by the iPhone, although police would continue investigating whether there was any other motive behind the killing.
Police recovered the phone from Tuhin’s home based on information provided by him.
The SP said Tuhin initially gave investigators incorrect information about its whereabouts but later disclosed the correct location, leading to its recovery.
Police said the three youths allegedly used a bamboo stick to attack Opratim during the attempt to snatch the phone.
The incident has raised concerns over the influence of mobile devices and social-media-driven lifestyles among teenagers, particularly where valuable phones become a target for theft or status-driven behaviour.
After two funeral prayers, Opratim was buried at Gandhamati graveyard in Kotbari upazila of Comilla Sadar Dakshin at about 11:30am on Sunday.
The first funeral prayer was held at Comilla University’s central field at around 10am, followed by a second prayer at Gandhamati Eidgah field near his home at 11am.
A large number of university teachers, students and local residents attended the prayers and later bid farewell to the child.
Meanwhile, students of Comilla University blocked the Dhaka-Chittagong highway in protest, demanding justice for Opratim’s killing.
The arrests and the minister’s assurance of a swift trial have brought an immediate response from the authorities, while the investigation continues into the circumstances surrounding the killing and whether factors beyond the attempted phone snatching were involved.
