8 indicted for Holey Artisan café attack

Holey Artisan café attack. File Photo
Holey Artisan café attack. File Photo

The police on Monday pressed charges against eight people in the sensational Holey Artisan cafe attack case, reports UNB.

Hasnat Karim, a North South University teacher who was one of the hostages and later detained, has been relieved from the charges since, the police said, there was no evidence of his complicity with the attack.

The terrorist attack that shattered the country and drew global attention, claimed lives of 22 people -- nine Italians, seven Japanese, one Indian, one Bangladeshi-born American and two Bangladeshis -- on 1 July 2016.

After all the formalities, the police has already sent the chargesheet to the court, Monirul Islam, chief of Counter-Terrorism and Transnational Crime (CTTC) unit, told a news briefing at the DMP headquarters.

Twenty-one people were identified behind the attack. Among them, 13 people were killed in gunfights at different times, said the CTTC chief.

Among the eight people, he said, six are now in jail and the remaining two are absconding.

The six people are Jahangir Alam alias Rajib Gandhi, Rakibul Hasan Rigan, Rashidul Islam alias Ryash, Sohel Mahfuz, Mizanur Rahman alias Choto Mizan, and Hadisur Rahman Sagor

In the investigation, it has been found that the criminals had planned it six months ahead of launching the attack. Their target was to make the country unstable, said Monirul.

“It was carried out to brand Bangladesh as a militant state, to corner the government, and to discourage foreign investors and buyers (from visiting Bangladesh),” he added.