Jamaat-supporting university teacher arrested in Florida over alleged sexual activity with an animal

Police have arrested Raiyan Abdul Baten, a university teacher and Jamaat supporter, in Hillsborough County in the US state of Florida on charges of filming, distributing and possessing images and videos of sexual activity with an animal (a goat). According to published records, Baten faces a charge of “Film, Distribute, or Possess Image or Video of Sexual Activity with an Animal”. The records list his location as Hillsborough County and the report date as October 29, 2026.

Baten is currently an assistant professor at the University of South Florida’s (USF) Bellini College of Artificial Intelligence, Cybersecurity, and Computing. The university’s website lists his qualifications as a BSc from the Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET) and an MS and a PhD from the University of Rochester. He completed his PhD in 2022.

Baten’s political affiliations have also come under renewed scrutiny. According to information held by The Document, several of his former classmates claimed that he was involved in Bangladesh Islami Chhatra Shibir politics as a student. They said his political involvement on campus was linked to Shibir, Jamaat’s student organisation.

Similar claims have been made about Baten’s current political leanings. According to information supplied for this report, both he and his wife support the politics of Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami. Baten’s public professional profile names Fatima Tuz Zohora as his wife. During the July 2024 movement, he was vocal on Facebook, using a red profile picture.