Bangladeshi PhD student Bristy's janaza held in Florida

The first namaz-e-janaza of Bangladeshi PhD student Nahida Sultana Bristy, who was brutally killed in the US state of Florida, was held yesterday (May 6) at 2:00pm in Tampa.

Golam Mortoza, press minister at the Bangladesh Embassy in Washington, shared the information in a Facebook post today.

Many students and teachers from the University of South Florida, along with members of the Bangladeshi community, attended the janaza.

A representative from the Bangladesh Consulate in Miami was also present.

After the janaza, Bristy’s body was handed over to a funeral service company, which will send the body to Dhaka today (May 7) from Orlando International Airport on an Emirates flight.

A representative from the Bangladesh Consulate in Miami will be present at Orlando airport.

The body is scheduled to reach Dhaka at 8:40am on Saturday (May 9).

The Bangladesh Embassy in Washington DC, in coordination with the Bangladesh Consulate in Miami and in consultation with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, is overseeing the entire process.

Bangladesh government is bearing all expenses for sending the bodies of Nahida Sultana Bristy and another slain Bangladeshi PhD student Jamil Limon, back to the country.

Jamil Limon’s body already reached Dhaka on Monday (May 4). Following the directive of Prime Minister Tarique Rahman, State Minister for Foreign Affairs Shama Obaed was present at the airport and handed over the body to Limon’s family.

According to the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office, Limon’s body was recovered on April 24 from several black garbage bags near the Howard Frankland Bridge area in Florida following the suspect’s interrogation.

Two days after Limon’s body was recovered, several fishermen spotted a black polythene bag while kayaking in a mangrove area on April 26, close to where his body had been found near the Howard Frankland Bridge.

After being informed, police went to the scene and found dismembered human remains inside the bag. The condition of the remains initially made identification difficult.

At a press conference on April 30, the Hillsborough County Sheriff confirmed that the recovered remains belonged to Brishty.