Jubo Dal leader Kibria killed by hired assailants getting order from abroad

The name of a top criminal from Pallabi in Mirpur, Dhaka, currently residing abroad, has surfaced in connection with the shooting death of Jubo Dal leader Golam Kibria.

The fugitive accused, Mofizur Rahman alias Mamun, is believed to have ordered the killing due to disputes over dominance in the area and financial dealings. The murder was carried out by hired criminals.

Police officers involved in the investigation of Kibria’s murder confirmed this information. Additionally, conversations with several local residents revealed that extortion was recently being carried out in the area on Mamun’s behalf.

Local BNP leaders also stated that Mamun wanted to use Kibria to establish dominance in the locality, but Kibria refused. They believe Mamun orchestrated the killing for this reason.

The deceased, Kibria, 47, was the member secretary of the Pallabi Thana Jubo Dal. His family reported that he also purchased medical equipment and supplied it to various institutions. On Monday, at around 6:45 pm, three masked assailants entered a shop named “Bikrampur hardware and sanitary” in Block B of Mirpur 12 and shot him at close range.

While fleeing, the assailants boarded a battery-powered auto-rickshaw; as the driver, Arif Hossain, 18, did not drive away quickly enough, they shot him in the waist, injuring him. During this time, local residents apprehended a man named Jony Bhuiyan, 25 and handed him over to the police.

According to police, Jony and several others had been hired to kill Kibria. The two other assailants directly involved have also been identified and efforts are underway to arrest them.

In connection with the murder, Kibria’s wife, Sabiha Akhter alias Dina, filed a case at Pallabi police station on Tuesday. The case names five individuals as accused, including Jony.

The other accused are Sohel alias Pata Sohel alias Monir Hossain, 30, Sohag alias Kalu, 27, Masum alias Bhagina Masum, 28 and Rokon, 30. The case also mentions that seven to eight unidentified individuals were involved in the killing. Pallabi police station is conducting the investigation.

Md Maksudur Rahman, deputy commissioner of the Mirpur division of police, told Prothom Alo on Tuesday that the detained Jony Bhuiyan has confessed to directly participating in the killing of Jubo Dal leader Kibria.

During preliminary questioning, Jony stated that he and several others had been hired to carry out the murder. The motive behind the killing and the individuals responsible have also been identified.

Several leaders of Dhaka north city Jubo Dal and multiple police officers involved in the investigation said that Pallabi’s top criminal, Mofizur Rahman alias Mamun, is currently in Malaysia, while his brother, Moshiur alias Moshi, is hiding in India.

Recently, Mamun instructed his associates to establish dominance in the area and seize control of the drug trade. However, Kibria refused to comply.

In addition, Kibria owes money to Mamun. Kibria had been delaying repayment. These factors have led them to believe that Mamun, angered by the situation, hired men to kill Kibria.

A BNP leader, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that Kibria used to associate with Mamun in the past. About 20 – 25 years ago, Kibria severed ties with him and had no contact with him afterwards. These reasons may have caused Mamun to harbour resentment towards Kibria.

Several local residents reported that Mamun, while living abroad, controls extortion activities at a garment factory in the area. A few days ago, when Kibria went there to collect extortion money, Mamun’s men obstructed him. Mamun also warned him over the phone not to go there again.

Furthermore, Mamun instructed Kibria to include several of his associates in the Pallabi thana Jubo Dal committee, but Kibria did not agree. For these reasons, Mamun became enraged with him.

There are 27 cases filed against Mamun at Pallabi police station on charges of extortion, murder, drug-related offences, possession of illegal firearms and robbery.

Police also hold records of 15 arrest warrants and 2 warrants of conviction against him. In 2021, Mamun, who had been sentenced to life imprisonment in one case, was arrested from Pallabi.

At the time, police stated that Mamun had been attempting to control Mirpur’s criminal networks from India. He later secured bail and subsequently fled to Malaysia, according to police.

Today, posters of Mofizur Rahman alias Mamun were seen displayed in several locations across Pallabi, identifying him as the president of ward 91 BNP. Commenting on this, a BNP leader stated that instructions had been issued to remove Mamun’s posters from the area.

Following Kibria’s murder, fear has spread among Jubo Dal leaders. Sajjadul Miraj, the member secretary of Dhaka north city Jubo Dal, told Prothom Alo on Tuesday, “During the Awami League government, we remained in hiding and there was no risk.

After the July uprising last year, I have had to continue political activities. As a result, criminals, troublemakers and opportunists have infiltrated our party ranks. In such a situation, we have become insecure. It is for this reason that we have lost a dedicated leader like Kibria.”

This Jubo Dal leader added that between 2001 and 2004, during the BNP–Jamaat alliance government, four BNP and Chhatra Dal leaders from the Pallabi Thana area were killed.

Additionally, in 2005, a Chhatra Dal leader was killed in a police ‘crossfire’. Now once again, a Jubo Dal leader has fallen victim to murder.

Sajjadul believes that if the law enforcement agencies acted properly, Kibria would not have been killed in this manner.

When visited at noon on Tuesday at Kibria’s residence near the fruit market in Mirpur 11-1/2, his wife, Sabiha Akhter, was found bedridden, weeping inconsolably after losing her husband.

Their two daughters were also crying, while relatives attempted to comfort them. Kibria’s brother, Golam Kabir, told journalists that their father, Mohammad Ali Talukdar, was a freedom fighter. Because of that, he received allocation of a house in Block Dha of Mirpur 12.

Kibria lived there with his family. In 2014, he was shot and injured near their home by assailants. They have yet to learn who attacked him or why. After the incident, Kibria moved his family to a rented house in Mirpur Section 11-1/2. Now they cannot understand who has killed his brother and for what reason.

Earlier in the morning, relatives went to the morgue of Shaheed Suhrawardy Medical College Hospital to receive Kibria’s body. There, his sister-in-law, Sufia Akhter, told Prothom Alo that her brother-in-law Kibria was a friend of Masud Rana, owner of Bikrampur hardware and sanitary in Mirpur 12. Whenever he had time, Kibria would sit and chat at the shop nearly every evening. On Tuesday evening, as usual, he had gone there.

Kibria’s friend, Sheikh Sohag, said they believe several factors were involved in the murder. According to him, mafia and criminal groups who created unrest after 5 August are connected to the killing. Issues relating to securing party positions within the BNP are also involved.