Criminal Investigation Department (CID) of police in Barguna on Monday started collecting DNA samples from families of missing passengers of MV Avijan-10 to identify the unclaimed bodies.
Earlier on Sunday, the district administration urged the family members looking for their missing relatives to submit their samples to identify the 23 unclaimed bodies that were buried in Potkakhali mass graveyard in the Sadar upazila on Saturday.
“We have collected 35 samples today at Barguna General Hospital and we will continue the collection if more people come to claim their missing relatives”, said Robiul Islam, DNA tester, Forensic DNA Laboratory CID, Dhaka.
A five member team is currently collecting the samples in Barguna, he said.
“We will be able to announce the results at least after a month of collecting the samples, He said.
However, the anxious families of the missing passengers complained the sample collection started at 4:00 pm six hours past the announced time.
A case filed with Barguna Chief Judicial Magistrate Court against the owner of MV Avijan-10 Hamjalal Sheikh and 24 others in connection with the deadly fire in the launch has been lodged as a First Information Report on Monday, said Shahidul Islam Milon, inspector (Investigation) of Barguna police station.
The investigation in the case has already started, he said.
The blaze broke out at 3:00 am on Friday on the Barguna-bound launch carrying some 800 passengers from Dhaka and it engulfed the entire vessel within 10 minutes.
The death toll from the fire incident climbed to 42 on Monday. Besides, over 81 people suffered injuries and many of them are undergoing treatment at different hospitals.
However, the exact number of passengers traveling by the launch and the missing passengers is yet to be known.
Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) have arrested Hamjalal Sheikh, one of the owners of launch MV ‘Avijan-10’ on Monday from Keraniganj, in connection with the tragedy in the launch.
