Army arrests 16,459 criminals in a year

The Bangladesh Army has conducted extensive operations in the last four weeks to maintain law and order in the country and curb various crimes including terrorism, drugs, smuggling.

Brigadier General Md Nazim-ud-Daula, director of the Military Operations Directorate of the Army Headquarters, briefed journalists at the Officers' Mess in Dhaka Cantonment Thursday.

Later, Colonel Staff of Military Operations Directorate Colonel Md Shafiqul Islam answered various questions from the journalists.

According to the briefing, so far the army has arrested 16,459 criminals during the tenure of the interim government and out of these, 813 people have been arrested in the last four weeks. During this time, a large amount of weapons, ammunition and narcotics have been recovered.

A total of 37 illegal weapons and 179 rounds of ammunition have also been recovered in the last four weeks. In addition, 9,729 out of 12,119 lost weapons and 287,033 rounds of ammunition have been recovered since the beginning of August.

Those arrested include members of juvenile gangs, listed terrorists, robbers and other criminals. In the operation, terrorist Yamin Siddiqui Nisat was arrested from Kalabagan on 14 July with a sophisticated foreign pistol and bullets.

On 19 July, a drive was conducted in Rupganj and seven people were arrested along with drugs and weapons. In the anti-drug operation, total 55 drug peddlers were arrested from various areas of the country including Rampura, Mohammadpur, Uttara, Bhashantek, Faridpur and Cumilla.

As many as 5,576 people have been arrested for drug-related crimes since last August. In the anti-smuggling operation, medicines worth Tk 11.2 million (Tk 1.12 crore) were recovered in Sunamganj and illegal cosmetics, clothes and coffee were seized in Sylhet.

Four brokers were arrested in a drive at the Dhaka and Purbachal offices of BRTA, who were illegally assisting in the production of driving licenses.

'Taqdir Food Beverages' and 'Royal Slice' restaurants, which produce adulterated food, have been fined and temporarily closed.

To prevent illegal extraction of sand and stones from the river, 34 boats, seven bulkheads, five dredgers, one pick-up truck and 60,500 CFT of sand have been recovered from Sunamganj and Sylhet alongside the arrest of 96 people involved.

On 16 July, a miscreant was arrested during an attempted murder in the Darus Salam area of Dhaka. Two murder suspects were arrested with weapons in Mohammadpur to prevent mob violence and were handed over to the police.

On 11 July, two women were arrested for spreading bomb scares on the Dhaka-Nepal route of Biman Bangladesh Airlines. On 14 July, Kamrul Mia, the mastermind of bKash fraud and online gambling, along with his associates were arrested in Madhukhali area of Faridpur while, a large amount of mobile SIMs and Yaba were recovered from their possession.

On 26 June, the army arrested six people accused of torturing two women over a land dispute and ensured free advanced medical treatment for the injured.

On 4 July, a total of 889 people injured in the July uprising were treated in various military medical centres across the country. In addition, the army performed security duties in different parts of the country during the Ulta Rath Yatra on 5 July.

The army is also engaged in maintaining communal harmony across the country as well as in ensuring the security of foreign diplomats and embassies.

On 21 July, the army showed professionalism in the rescue and medical operations for the affected in the crash of an Air Force training aircraft into Milestone School in Uttara area of the capital.

Out of the 41 injured in the crash, 11 are currently undergoing treatment. During the rescue, 29 soldiers were injured, one of whom is still undergoing treatment at the hospital. Meanwhile, the bodies of 14 people have been handed over to their families.

On 22 July, five soldiers were injured in an attack on soldiers while they were entering the secretariat during a demonstration staged by the HSC examinees. They were transferred to CMH after receiving primary treatment at the clinic inside the secretariat.

A huge amount of weapons and drugs were recovered and seven terrorists were arrested in the operation conducted across the Chattogram Hill Tracts from 3 to 31 July.

Important operations were conducted in Baghaihat and Bandarban, destroying abandoned training camps and recovering weapons.

A huge amount of illegal goods and weapons alongside drugs including yaba, crystal ice, ganja, and cigarettes were recovered in the operation conducted along the Bangladesh-Myanmar border area.

In response to a question from journalists, Brigadier General Md Nazim-ud-Daula said that many members of the National Citizen Party (NCP) in Gopalganj were threatened with death. The army helped save the lives of those people.

The Bangladesh Army is committed to maintaining law and order in the country, preventing terrorism, drugs, smuggling, and public safety, and is performing its duties around the clock, he added.