Police unable to trace them, yet 2 associates of ‘criminal’ Sazzad secure bail in court
They are key associates of fugitive ‘criminal’ Sazzad Ali, also known as Boro Sazzad, who is currently abroad. One is Mobarak Hossain, also known as Emon, and the other is Borhan Uddin. Their names have repeatedly surfaced in incidents involving extortion from owners of under-construction buildings and businesspeople, shootings over unpaid extortion, and killings openly carried out in public streets.
Chattogram Metropolitan Police have been actively searching for them. However, despite police failing to find them, the two appeared before the High Court and secured bail. In the widely discussed double murder case in Chattogram, the two criminals were granted six weeks’ bail on 1 February. Police only became aware of the development after the order reached Bakalia Police Station on 29 March.
Deputy commissioner (south) of Chattogram Metropolitan Police, Hossain Mohammad Kabir Bhuiyan, confirmed that the two criminals had obtained bail. He told Prothom Alo that police are searching for them. In the meantime, they have secured bail in the double murder case. The matter is being communicated to the prosecution through higher authorities.
The case in which the two criminals secured bail
The double murder took place on 30 March 2025 in the Bakalia area of Chattogram. That night, assailants opened indiscriminate fire on Bakalia Access Road, killing Bakhtiar Hossain, 30, and Md Abdullah, 32, who were inside a private car. The two victims were known as followers of Sarwar Hossain, also known as Babla, a criminal who had split from Boro Sazzad’s gang. Sarwar was also in the car but survived.
Police said the attack was carried out with the intention of killing Sarwar Hossain to maintain control over the scrap trade from garment factories and to uphold Sazzad’s dominance. Two of his associates were killed in the incident. Although Sarwar survived the attack that night, he was later shot dead on 5 November. A case was filed at the police station on 31 March, the day after the double murder, naming Mobarak and Borhan among the accused.
Beyond the double murder, the two have been linked to multiple killings and extortion cases in the city as well as in Raozan and Hathazari. They are also accused of involvement in the killing of ‘criminal’ Akbar Ali, also known as Dhakaiya Akbar and Sarwar Hossain. Akbar Ali was shot dead in public at Patenga Sea Beach on 23 May last year while Sarwar was shot dead in Khandakarpara under Bayezid Bostami police station on 5 November.
Two feared criminals in Chattogram
Beyond the double murder, the two have been linked to multiple killings and extortion cases in the city as well as in Raozan and Hathazari. They are also accused of involvement in the killing of ‘criminal’ Akbar Ali, also known as Dhakaiya Akbar and Sarwar Hossain.
Akbar Ali was shot dead in public at Patenga Sea Beach on 23 May last year while Sarwar was shot dead in Khandakarpara under Bayezid Bostami police station on 5 November. At the time, he was engaged in political outreach for Ershad Ullah, BNP-nominated candidate for Chattogram-8 (Boalkhali–Chandgaon) and now a member of parliament. Ershad Ullah and five others were injured in the attack.
Most recently on 28 February, gunmen opened fire at the residence of Smart Group chairman Mostafizur Rahman Chowdhury after allegedly failing to extort a large sum. Mostafizur Rahman’s brother, Mujibur Rahman, won the 2024 election as an independent candidate.
Law enforcement sources said fugitive Sazzad had been demanding large sums from Smart Group. When the demands were not met, he first ordered a firing at Mostafizur Rahman’s house on 1 January this year, during which gunfire shattered the house’s window glass. A second firing followed two months later.
Mobarak Hossain, also known as Emon, is from Kanchannagar area in Fatikchhari and is the son of Md Musa. He is accused in seven cases, including the double murder and the killing of Dhakaiya Akbar. Police said there is evidence in some photographs showing him carrying 15–20 firearms. He allegedly arranged the gunmen and motorcycles used in the double murder. Borhan faces eight cases involving extortion, arms, and murder.
Abdus Sattar, president of the Chattogram District Bar Association, said the failure to arrest the two high-profile criminals reflects shortcomings in police intelligence surveillance. He told Prothom Alo that it is the responsibility of the police to arrest such criminals. Since they have secured bail, the prosecution can now take necessary steps.
When asked, public prosecutor of the Chattogram Metropolitan Sessions Judge Court, Mofizul Haque Bhuiyan, told Prothom Alo that the state would take appropriate action in this regard.