The Police Bureau of Investigation (PBI) has arrested three individuals for allegedly abducting a passenger and extorting Tk 4.27 lakh in Narsingdi district. The arrestees are Md Omar Faruk, 34, Nizam Uddin alias Mizan, 30, and Md Saiful Islam Fakir, 32. PBI Narsingdi Superintendent of Police Dr SM Farhad Hossain confirmed the arrests. Police also recovered a private car allegedly used in the abduction, Tk 50,250 in cash, and six mobile phones.
Abduction and Extortion Details
According to PBI, Mamunur Rashid, 42, was waiting for a vehicle at Chaitanya Bus Stand in Shibpur around 7:30 pm on July 30. The driver of a private car offered to take him to Signboard in Narayanganj for a fare equivalent to a bus fare. Mamunur boarded the car, where another person was already posing as a passenger. Two more people later joined them.
After travelling some distance, the occupants allegedly threatened Mamunur with iron rods and pipes, blindfolded him, and held him hostage. They allegedly assaulted him and took him to different locations. The abductors took two mobile phones and Tk 7,000 in cash from him and withdrew Tk 2.20 lakh from his bKash, Nagad, and Rocket accounts. They later collected another Tk 2 lakh from his family members through bKash and Nagad.
Investigation and Arrests
After extorting a total of Tk 4.27 lakh, they allegedly left Mamunur blindfolded beside the Dhaka-Sylhet highway near Morjal Bus Stand in Raipura upazila. He later contacted his family with help from local people and received treatment at Shibpur Upazila Health Complex. Mamunur filed a case with Shibpur Model Police Station on August 1. PBI took over the investigation on August 27 after the police station had investigated the case for 27 days.
PBI said it analysed CCTV footage and mobile financial transaction records and spoke with local residents to identify the suspects. On August 28, PBI conducted drives in Dhaka and Gazipur and arrested Omar Faruk from a garage in Board Bazar area under Gacha Police Station in Gazipur. Acting on his information, police recovered the black private car allegedly used in the abduction.
Later, Nizam Uddin and Saiful Islam Fakir were arrested in the Katra area under Gacha Police Station based on information provided by Omar. During preliminary interrogation, the three allegedly admitted to involvement in abducting passengers and extorting money using the same method in different parts of the country, PBI said. The agency also said the three were accused in several cases filed with different police stations across the country.
