District Detective Branch (DB) police recovered the body of a five-year-old boy, Md. Rayan Mallik, three days after he went missing in Bhola’s Bhandaria upazila of Pirojpur district. The body was found around 1 a.m. on Monday inside a haystack in a neighbor’s cowshed. Rayan, son of Malaysia expatriate Russell Mallik, was a kindergarten student at Pashuribunia Afsaria Nurani Kindergarten. His family alleged that a rival uncle, Abdul Kader Mallik, killed the child and hid the body.

Police arrested four suspects in connection with the incident: Riyad Mallik, Mizan Mallik, Sayedul Islam, and Parvin Begum. The victim’s grandfather, Abdul Haque Mallik, filed a murder case at Bhandaria Police Station. According to Pirojpur Superintendent of Police Mohammad Manzur Ahmed Siddiqui, Rayan went missing on Friday afternoon, and his mother filed a general diary after failing to locate him.

During the investigation, police recovered a note from a nearby mosque veranda. Handwriting analysis led to the detention of cousin Riyad Mallik, who later admitted writing the note. Based on his information and intelligence, the remaining three suspects were quickly identified and arrested.