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On the day of the incident, before Iftar, Kulsuma, whose nickname is Shiuly, went out to buy food with her infant son after observing a full day's fast. It was then that Masum, who had been lying in wait, attacked Shiuly with a sharp knife.
A Bangladeshi man stands accused of the brutal murder of his estranged wife in Bradford, a case that casts a stark light on the increasing prevalence of domestic violence within the newly arrived Bangladeshi community in the UK. The court heard that Habibur Masum, 26, fatally stabbed Kulsuma Akter, 27, multiple times in the head, neck, and body as she pushed their seven-month-old baby in a pram.
The horrific incident occurred on April 6 last year, outside a shop at approximately 3 PM, after Masum allegedly tracked down Akter to a women's refuge where she had sought safety. Kulsuma Akter, who had arrived in the UK from Bishwanath, Sylhet, Bangladesh, two years prior with Masum on a student dependent visa, had moved out of their Oldham home following persistent threats and attacks from him, a jury at Bradford Crown Court was told.
Masum, whose ancestral home is also in Bishwanath, Sylhet, pleaded guilty to manslaughter in a hearing last week but denies a charge of murder. Prosecutor Stephen Wood KC detailed a months-long campaign of stalking, threatening, and assaulting Akter. On the day of the attack, Akter was pushing their infant son near where she had fled "to escape his violence, to escape his jealousy, to escape his controlling behaviour" when Masum approached her.
Disturbing CCTV footage, played to jurors after warnings of its graphic and distressing nature, showed Masum grabbing Akter, who was dressed in a black coat and hijab. The video then depicted Masum brandishing a knife from his padded jacket and repeatedly stabbing Akter as an onlooker screamed. Akter fell to the ground, her pram rolling away, while Masum continued his brutal assault. The court noted that Masum, wearing a blue T-shirt and grey jacket, left the dock, unwilling to witness the footage of the stabbing.
Wood described Masum as "rational and calculating" on the day of the attack, noting he had taken a bus and put his phone on airplane mode to avoid being tracked. A three-day manhunt ensued, culminating in Masum's arrest outside Stoke Mandeville Hospital in Buckinghamshire, where he had sought treatment for lockjaw. Jurors were shown hospital CCTV footage of Masum with a changed appearance, having shaved his beard and bought new clothes, as a police appeal played on BBC News in the waiting room in the early hours of April 9.
The court heard chilling details of Masum's past behavior, including multiple threats to kill Akter and her brothers. In a November 2023 incident, while Akter was on maternity leave from her bakery job, police were called after Masum was accused of attacking her. The prosecution described this as a "chilling prediction of what he was to do in April of the following year," revealing that he had put a knife to her throat and threatened to kill her while she held their baby.
An image of Akter with a bruise below her left eye, which Masum claimed she inflicted upon herself, was also presented. A social worker had arranged for Akter to be moved to a different refuge, a move tragically scheduled for just two days after her death.
While Masum is expected to claim he lost control, Wood asserted these were "fake defences" from a man unwilling to confront his actions. The trial continues amidst growing concerns among community leaders and social services about the surge in domestic disputes within the newly arrived Bangladeshi community, often exacerbated by financial pressures, cultural adjustments, and other societal issues.
