Main shooter of Zahidul killing arrested: DB

Detective Branch (DB) of Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) has claimed to arrest the main shooter of the killings of Awami Leauge leader Zahidul Islam Tipu and college student Samia Afnan in the city's Shahjahanpur.

The DB disclosed the information at a press briefing at DMP Media Center on Sunday.

The police said the arrested shooter Masum Mohammad alias Akash gave confession on killing Zahidul during the primary interrogation. Moreover, Masum’s link with the shooting was ascertained upon assessing CCTV footage and other information.

The DB said Masum was arrested on Sunday morning from Bagura.

Former general secretary of Awami League’s Motijheel unit Zahidul and college student Samia Afrin aka Priti, 22, were shot dead in Shajahanpur’s Amtola Mosque area in the capital city Thursday night.

Priti was on a rickshaw stuck in a traffic jam at the time. The driver of Zahidul’s microbus also got shot in the incident.

DB’s additional commissioner AKM Hafiz Akter said Masum was hired five days before the killing. An unknown person at the Kamalapur Inland Depot area handed over arms and a motorcycle to Masum and his associate three days before the incident.

Masum and his associate went to Motijheel’s AGB Colony to kill Zahidul a day before the incident. But they did not succeed that day, Hafiz Akter said adding, shooter Masum did not take part in killing only for economic reasons.

Masum studied in the Graphics Design department at university. Son of a school teacher of Chandpur, Masum is absconded in several cases. The perpetrators hired Mausm promising him to exonerate from the cases in exchange for Zahidul killing, Hafiz said.

The DB, however, is yet to ascertain who hired Masum.