What Bangladesh prime minister Sheikh Hasina’s son Sajeeb Wazed Joy does, her daughter-in-law Kristine Overmire Wazed does better.
Bangladesh prime minister Sheikh Hasina’s American daughter-in-law Kristine Overmire Wazed has acquired a new house in Virginia, and it is not very far from two other mansion-like homes owned by her elusive son Sajeeb Wazed Joy.
On October 12, a Virginia-based realtor Alisa Castillo, describing Kristine as her friend, put out photographs of the latter holding a ‘SOLD’ card, indicating that she is the owner of a new house. Castillo appeared to be the real estate agent for Realty ONE Group Capital which settled the purchase.
The congratulatory message that Castillo wrote under the photograph is joyous and touching, though a tad cryptic: “Congratulations to my client and friend on her closing! It’s a beautiful home for her and her daughter to make happy memories!”
Does this mean that Kristine and her daughter Sophia Rehana Wazed have moved out Joy’s residence and will now live all by themselves? The photographs are suggestive in more ways than one: Acquiring a new house – and that too a large country house – is a joyous occasion in the US.
Couples usually pose together for such happy occasions; after all, such real estate acquisitions involve investments of a tidy amount.
But Joy is missing from the photographs posted by Castillo. This begs the question: Where is Sajeeb Wazed Joy? It is not certain when Joy made his last public appearance in Dhaka this year though he did appear before a city court in November last year. What is, however, certain is that he went out of ‘circulation’ and has not been seen in public for the last three months.
Much of Dhaka is split on the whereabouts of the elusive Joy. He supposedly posted a photograph on his Facebook page on September 29. It featured Sheikh Hasina, his daughter and, in all likelihood Saima Wazed’s daughter and the latter’s friend, during Bangladesh prime minister’s visit to Washington, DC, as part of her official tour to the US. Kristine did not feature in the photograph. This photograph, taken at the River Bend Golf and Country Club (in Virginia), took Bangladesh by storm. The photograph, however, did not quite serve to satisfy Bangladeshis’ curiosity over Joy’s current location.
His prolonged absence from public life, followed by the widely reported meeting between Sheikh Hasina and US National Security Adviser (NSA) Jake Sullivan at the Bangladesh embassy in Washington, DC, on September 27, set off speculations on his “freedom of movement” and whether he was in a spot of difficulty. Is his current condition somehow related to moves by US law enforcement agencies? Or is his current condition an outcome of constraints imposed on him by official quarters?
Kristine Overmire Wazed’s decision to move to a new residence along with her daughter suggests that Joy remains isolated. He has at least two other sprawling properties in Virginia’s Great Falls town. One is located at 10411, Parkerhouse Drive, and the other is at 9911, Mill Run Drive. The expansive properties, acquired in 2018 and 2019, certainly appear to be expensive.
Photographs taken specially for Northeast News suggest that not too many people live in these elegant and chic homes. Surrounded by trees, the properties have large, perfectly manicured front and backyards. And they have swimming pools.
It is not known whether Joy remains ensconced in one of these two homes. It is not known whether he enjoys the freedom to move around Great Falls. And it is also not known whether he lives in the shadow of a restraining authority.
