Former Bangladesh Air Force Flight Lieutenant Tahsif Souri left home on Tuesday evening after a friend called for him. He told his mother he would return shortly after speaking to the friend.

However, he returned a day later, in the form of a dead body.

River Police recovered the body of 28-year-old Souri from the Turag River in Dhaka on Wednesday.

Souri’s father, KM Enayetul Karim Helal, a former director of Padma Oil Company Limited, told the media that his son had sent a voice message in the early hours of Wednesday saying he was on his way home.

“His friend named Dip came to call him. He told his mother that he would go downstairs to talk for a while. But he never returned. At 1:35am, he sent a voice message, speaking very quickly, saying, ‘I’m coming, I’m on my way, I’m coming,’” Helal said on Thursday.

Rejecting the possibility that his son had died by suicide, Helal said, “No, no, this was not a suicide. He had spent the whole day with his mother and went shopping. He was in a very happy mood.”

“I believe he was murdered and his body was dumped in the river. An investigation by the government could identify the actual perpetrators. It would reveal which group was involved, who did it and why. He was an asset to the country—a pilot,” he said.

Asked whether the family knew of any issues related to Souri’s dismissal from the Air Force or any potential threats he might have faced, Helal said they had no such information.

He said the family would consider filing a case over Souri’s death after his burial.

Earlier, Firoz Uddin, inspector-in-charge of the Tongi River Police outpost, told Daily Waadaa that police had received information about a body floating in the river through the national emergency helpline 999.

“Based on the information, our team went to the spot and recovered the body at around 4:30pm on Wednesday,” he said.

News of Souri’s death triggered reactions on social media, with some users questioning the circumstances and linking his death to footage of former prime minister Sheikh Hasina fleeing Bangladesh on August 5, 2024, following the July uprising that ousted her.

On August 4, 2025, Daily Amar Desh reported that Souri had posted footage of Hasina fleeing the country, recorded by Flight Lieutenant Rifat Ashrafi.

When contacted by the newspaper, Souri initially responded: “Which video? I don’t quite understand what you are referring to.”

The Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) later said in a statement that Souri and Flight Lieutenant Rifat Ashrafi had been retired under the Air Force’s prevailing rules and regulations in an administrative context.

Souri’s relative, Moshfeka Jahan, alleged in a Facebook post that he had been murdered and monitored by intelligence personnel after his retirement.

Former military colleague KSM Intisaar Inzimam also linked his death to the controversy surrounding the footage.

Waadaa could not independently verify these claims.

Souri’s family could not immediately be reached for further comment.