Fear grips people as criminals on the prowl

Fear has gripped the people across the country as various crimes including robbery, mugging and pickpocketing have risen alarmingly.

People are being taken hostage and their belongings are being looted at gun point.

On Sunday night, muggers shot and hacked a gold trader in the city's Banasree to snatch gold jewelry while he was on his way to home.

A video of the incident went viral on social media which created panic among people.

Not only the Banasree incident, but a series of crimes have come to light in the past few months.

Police statistics show that there has been an increase in cases of robbery in recent times. A total of 242 cases were filed over robbery and snatching in January, which is 99 more (or 69 per cent more) than the corresponding month of the previous year.  

A total of 230 such cases were filed in December, which were 95 more (70 per cent) than the same month in previous year.

Between August 2024 and January 2025, a total of 1145 cases of robbery and mugging were filed across the country which were 382 more than corresponding six months of 2023-24.

Criminologists say that the number of cases filed does not always reflect the real picture of law and order situation. Police file cases only when victims go to police stations to register an allegation. In many cases, victims don’t go to the police fearing harassment.

Police stations sometimes take general diaries (GDs) for the loss of valuables or money instead of taking cases in incidents of robbery and mugging. However, the police say that they are no longer reluctant to register cases which is likely a reason behind the rise in the number of cases.

Md Tawohidul Haque, an associate professor at the Institute of Social Welfare and Research at Dhaka University, told Prothom Alo that one of the indicators of the law and order situation is whether people feel safe at home or outside or while moving around. People are not feeling safe nowadays.

The interim government took charge on 8 August after the fall of the autocratic Awami League government in a mass-uprising. The main challenge ahead of the government was bringing political stability and improving the law and order situation in the country. Analysts said the government has succeeded in establishing political stability but the challenges with the law and order still remain.

There was no policing whatsoever in the country for three days following the July uprising. Later, the police stations slowly returned to normalcy but the experts think police are yet to become fully active as usual. Police are also grappling with a new situation. As almost all manpower of police is fresh in Dhaka and other big cities, they are not so well conversant with criminals and criminal activities. They don’t have adequate sources to get tip-off about crimes and nab criminals. Morale of the police force is yet to be fully restored while the force is still reeling from the logistics crisis.

Experts and police officials added that the law enforcers are failing to prevent chaos and crimes in iron hands, giving the criminals a sense that they would get a freebie. A thana level official of Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) on condition of anonymity told Prothom Alo that there is a risk of being attacked in any raid. Situation might worsen in case of using force. This is why criminals are not afraid of police that much nowadays which makes them more desperate.

Police headquarters sources said a total of 758 ‘muggers’ were arrested in 289 cases in Dhaka city between 1 January and 20 February. Of them, 115 have already been released. The arrested 'muggers' walk out of jail within a short time in many cases. A person named Faim Khan was arrested in a robbery case filed with Sutrapur police station on 16 January, only to get bail the following day. Police say criminals get involved with crime again after being freed on bail.

Several police officials and crime experts attribute economic situation and unemployment as reasons behind increase of crime rate.

The police have also found different types of criminals depending on the area. Police say that a majority of the criminals in Mohammadpur, Dhanmondi and Hazaribagh areas are associated with top terrorists. Many of them have recently been released from prison on bail.

Professional robbery gangs are more active in Gulistan, Jatrabari and its surrounding areas. On the other hand, the activities of young criminal gangs are more noticeable in Uttara. In addition to professional criminals, police have found more activity of seasonal criminals in Khilgaon, Moghbazar, Badda and Mohakhali areas.

Meanwhile, police say that rumors about rape, mugging and robbery are being spread from some IDs and pages on social media Facebook. Old videos are being circulated anew, creating more panic among the people. Some fabricated crime statistics are being presented on social media without any source.

A total of 72 rape cases have occurred in the last 65 hours’ – such a news has been spread on social media for the past two days. A media outlet has published a report based on a Facebook post. The Chief Advisor's Press Wing said on Monday that the information is not correct. They said that spreading exaggerated information and false statistics about serious crimes like rape is unexpected and undesirable; as it causes confusion in the public mind.

The police have identified more than a hundred Facebook accounts (IDs) and pages involved in spreading rumors. However, no information has been received about any action being taken against anyone so far.

DMP Detective Branch’s (DB) additional commissioner Rezaul Karim Mallik told Prothom Alo, “The issue of spreading rumors and creating panic in the public mind was also discussed in the high-level meeting of the Home Ministry's core committee on Monday. We will work with all our might to catch the real criminals. On the other hand, action will also be taken against those who spread rumors and create fear in the minds of people and create instability.”

The deterioration of law and order situation in the country hogged headlines afresh centering robbery on a Rajshahi-bound bus and molestation of its passengers on 17 February. In quick succession, news and videos of mugging and robbery on the streets of the city's Moghbazar, Mohammadpur and some other areas went viral on social media. A robbery in Kishoreganj on Dhaka-Sylhet highway by setting up a fake police check post also took place.

Amid this situation, students in different educational institutions staged demonstrations demanding resignation of the home adviser for the last two days. In the middle of the protest, a jewelry businessman was shot in the city's Banasree area on Sunday night and gold jewelry was looted from him. A video footage of the incident went viral on social media, much to the consternation of people. A demonstration was staged on the Dhaka University campus that very night demanding resignation of home adviser.

Home affairs adviser Lieutenant General (retd) Md Jahangir Alam Chowdhury held an emergency press conference at 3 in the night. Later on Monday a meeting of the core committee on law and order was held at the secretariat. Following the meeting, the home adviser said law enforcement agencies will ramp up their activities as incidents of mugging and robbery have surged in different parts of the country, including the capital.

Meanwhile, Inspector General of Police Baharul Alam told journalists in Rajsahhi yesterday, “Number of crimes, especially mugging at night, has increased. We’ve decided to take a special measure about it.”

He said Rapid Action Battalion (RAB), Anti-Terrorism Unit (ATU) and DMP will launch a special drive in Dhaka. The special drive was supposed to be launched last night.

“Let’s see if the situation improves this way. If it doesn’t, we will think about alternatives,” said the IGP.

The holy month of Ramadan will begin early next month. Economic activities have already increased in wholesale markets and clothes sales have begun centering Eid Ul Fitr. Economic activities will increase as people will throng supermarkets for Eid shopping. There are risks of a rise in robbery and snatching in this period.

The businessmen are worried as to why the law and order situation is not improving despite a special drive titled ‘operation devil hunt’.

Dhaka Chamber’s former president Abul Kashem Khan told Prothom Alo that it was acceptable that the government's grip over the law and order situation was rather flaccid during the initial several months. But it is not acceptable that the law and order situation has not improved in around seven months.

He said the government has to attach utmost priority to maintaining law and order. Otherwise people won’t come out to shop which will have a negative impact on businesses and the overall economy.