Friends, co-workers mourn 4 members of same family found dead in Markham

A twist in the story of a Markham family -- murdered inside their home this weekend. CityNews's Tina Yazdani with what we're learning about the man who allegedly killed four members of his own family -- and what he said about his parents.

By News Staff and The Canadian Press

Friends and co-workers have identified the victims of a quadruple homicide in Markham, as four members of the same family.

Malesa Zaman, her father Moniruz Zaman, mother Momtaz “Mukta” Zaman, and grandmother Firoza Begum were all found dead in their home on Sunday.

Begum had been visiting the family from Bangladesh when she was killed.

Police have charged Menhaz Zaman – who lived at the residence – with four counts of first-degree murder but have not identified the victims or commented on the relationship between them and the 23-year-old man.

Robin Islam, a close friend of the family, said they met through the Bangladeshi community and gathered in a large group of 11 other families. He said both kids, including Menhaz, were normal and very polite.

He said his wife was very close friends with Momtaz and she, along with all their friends, are in shock.

“We went to their home pretty frequently and she would come to my home, and my wife would go to hers. I’d go to pick them up, [they] never had any issues.”

He said Moniruz came to Canada in the 1980s and lived in Montreal before moving to the Toronto area.

Islam said it was just over a month ago that Moniruz and Momtaz celebrated their 25th anniversary at the Markham Convention Centre. He said Menhaz even spoke about his parents for almost 25 minutes, including a slideshow.

“He did a nice slideshow about their parents, and he talked [for] more than 25 minutes about their parents: how good they are, how good the family. Unbelievable,” said Islam.

Islam added Malesa had been studying to become a doctor.

“I don’t know what’s behind this, I never saw anything, any clue, anything that this could happen. They were a very nice family,” said Islam. “The gentleman was very quiet, any party we go to, he always used to sit beside me.”

Islam said on Sunday he had been driving his wife and some of their mutual friends home from a community event in Oshawa, when they contemplating stopping at the Zaman’s home. They didn’t end up stopping and later that night, he found out what had happened to his friends.

A woman identifying herself on fundraising website GoFundMe as a close friend of Malesa Zaman says she knew the family for more than 12 years.

Afnan Alibaccas writes that her friend had “the sweetest heart” and says all proceeds from the online fundraiser will go towards funeral costs.

Meanwhile, Beck Taxi says it was “devastated” by the death of Moniruz Zaman, who had been an employee with the cab company since 2011.

Top Stories

Top Stories

Most Watched Today