Nearly two and a half months after the body of Terrence Arvelle Jackson, a former US Special Forces (Airborne) officer, was discovered in a Dhaka hotel room, new details have emerged about his movements inside Bangladesh. Indian intelligence agencies have learned that Jackson, 50, visited at least three key defence establishments across different districts in the four months following his arrival in April 2025.
Jackson — a Command Inspector General with the US Army’s 1st Special Forces Command (Airborne) — was found dead on August 31 in Room 808 of The Westin Dhaka. Bangladesh police initially indicated natural causes, with no signs of foul play. However, the body was handed over to US authorities without an autopsy, after three American diplomats rushed to the hotel and declined the procedure.
Originally from Raeford, North Carolina, and born in Ohio in 1975, Jackson had served over 20 years in the US Army, including combat deployments across Asia. Intelligence officials believe his last in-service unit was the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (Airborne), famously known as the “Night Stalkers”. After taking early retirement, he joined a private American security company.
Jackson arrived in Bangladesh in April 2025, staying at The Westin Hotel in Dhaka under a booking arranged by the US Embassy. During his stay, he reportedly visited Rajshahi, Sylhet and Chittagong Naval Base — home to Bangladesh Navy’s fleet of ships and submarines.
The Chittagong naval zone also includes the Bangladesh Naval Academy, naval dockyard, and smaller bases like BNS Ulka and BNS Bhatiary.
Though his precise purpose in Rajshahi and Sylhet remains unclear, the regions host major military hubs, which include the Bangladesh Infantry Regimental Centre in Rajshahi and 17th Infantry Division and Para Commando Brigade at Jalalabad Cantonment in Sylhet.
There is some evidence that Jackson conducted training sessions for Bangladesh Army officers during his stay.
Intelligence agencies are examining whether Jackson travelled to Rajshahi to meet Richard Daniel Roman, another US national linked to the private security firm Makwa Global Solutions. Roman stayed at the Grand Riverview Hotel, located opposite the Rajshahi Metropolitan Police headquarters.
Documents available with Indian intelligence establishments confirm that Roman left Rajshahi on 5 September, five days after Jackson's death. He flew from Rajshahi to Dhaka via US-Bangla Airlines, before departing Bangladesh that same evening.
Intelligence authorities are trying to determine the exact dates of Jackson’s visits to Rajshahi, Sylhet, and Chittagong, the people he met at these military facilities and his mission objectives, given his background and the US Embassy–arranged travel.
Indian intelligence agencies remain concerned about the nature of Jackson’s activities, noting that he travelled to “different locations in the country for work related to his country’s government.”
The circumstances of his death — the lack of an autopsy, the diplomatic intervention, and his extensive movements — continue to fuel speculation as investigations proceed.
Follow us
