After being missing for 27 years, Amir Hossain Talukder, a 62-year-old from Naria in Shariatpur, has returned to Bangladesh from Malaysia. He arrived in Dhaka late Tuesday night on a Batik Air flight and was received at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport by his family, BRAC Migration Program representatives, and airport officials. His return brought both joy and sorrow, as he was found to be mentally unstable and unable to recognize his family members.

According to family sources, Amir Hossain went to Malaysia in 1996 to work as a painter and regularly sent money home for the first few years. Communication was lost after three years, and his family eventually assumed he had died. Recently, Bangladeshi expatriates discovered him living in a tin shed in a jungle in Penang, Malaysia, and shared his photos and videos online. His family identified him from those images and contacted BRAC, which coordinated with the Bangladesh Embassy in Malaysia to arrange his return.

BRAC stated that it will provide necessary medical and rehabilitation support considering Amir Hossain’s physical and mental condition.