Police on Friday said Zakir Hossain alias Sohel Rana, the prime accused in the murder of seven-year-old Ramisa Akter in the capital's Pallabi, had previously been involved in various criminal activities.
"His previous record is not good, and he was of bad character," Mohammad Shafiqul Islam, detective branch (DB) chief and additional commissioner of Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP), told a press briefing at the DMP Media Centre in the capital.
He said the investigation report in the Ramisa murder case would be submitted to the court soon.
Police recovered Ramisa's beheaded body from a house in Pallabi on Tuesday morning, triggering widespread outrage across the country.
Zakir was later arrested in Narayanganj.
Meanwhile, the Dhaka Bar Association has announced none of its members will provide legal services to the defendant in the case.
Its General Secretary Mohammad AbulKalam Khan made the announcement on Friday.
"Following a virtual executive committee meeting on Zoom, we have unanimously decided that no member of our association will represent the accused in the Ramisa rape and murder case," he said.
President of the association Md Anwar ZahidBhuiyan said the rape and murder of an innocent child like Ramisa was an exceptionally heinous and grave offence.
"We demand exemplary punishment for those involved in such a crime. Consequently, we have decided that no lawyer from our association will represent the defendant."
According to the police, Zakir gave a confessional statement before the court under Section 164, admitting to raping and killing the child.
The authorities said the child's head had been severed after the killing and was later found in the bathroom, while the main body was recovered from beneath a bed.
In the same case, Zakir's wife SwapnaKhatun, 26, has been sent to jail.
People from different walks of life gathered in front of Ramisa's house on Friday morning to demand justice for the victim.
They formed human chains and held demonstrations under the banners of various social and voluntary organisations.
The protesters expressed anger, saying the safety of children in society would not be ensured unless there was a fair trial in such a brutal murder case.
Later after Jumma prayer, demonstrators blocked the Mirpur-10 intersection for three hours demanding justice for Ramisa Akter. Blockade of the key intersection in Mirpur spawned several gridlocks as locals demonstrated demanding justice for Ramisa Akter.
The blockade, which started following Jummah prayers around 3pm, ended after almost three hours, around 6pm on Friday.
The demonstration at the busy Mirpur-10 intersection brought vehicular movement acroos the area to a near standstill.
Earlier on Thursday night, Prime Minister Tarique Rahman visited Ramisa's house.
He inquired about the tragic incident and assured the victim's family of meting out stringent punishment to the accused in the shortest possible time.
During the visit, he was accompanied by Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed and State Minister for Sports AminulHaque
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