Mugging-looting with stolen arms, no trace of 1363

Police arrested two persons named Md Parvez and Reazur Rahman from Chattogram in May and recovered a revolver and bullets looted from the Pahartali police station in the port city from them.

During questioning, they told the police that they used the arms for mugging and looting.

Wishing to be unnamed, several top police officials told Prothom Alo that many of the arms and ammunition, which were looted from police stations in the days after the previous government was deposed in the face of the July uprising, are yet to be recovered.

Those weapons are now in the hands of criminals and are being used for criminal activities. Apart from that, more than 700 fugitives, who escaped from prisons during the July uprising, are still absconding.

Under these circumstances, the police officials fear a deterioration of law and order ahead of the upcoming national polls to be held in February next year.

Speaking to Prothrom Alo, Police Headquarters additional inspector general (crime and operations) Khondaker Rafiqul Islam said, “Most of the looted arms have been retrieved. However, the missing arms and ammunition pose a security risk, which has raised concerns. Drives are underway to recover them. However, there is no fear of any deterioration in the law and order situation.”

Speaking to Prothrom Alo, Police Headquarters additional inspector general (crime and operations) Khondaker Rafiqul Islam said, “Most of the looted arms have been retrieved. However, the missing arms and ammunition pose a security risk, which has raised concerns. Drives are underway to recover them. However, there is no fear of any deterioration in the law and order situation.”

According to the Police Headquarters, various police units and establishments, including police stations, police outposts and police boxes, came under attack and arson following the fall of the Awami League government on 5 August last year in the face of the July uprising.

Numerous police vehicles were set on fire and a total of 5,753 firearms and 651,832 rounds of ammunition were looted. The looted arms and ammunition include rifles, SMGs (submachine guns), LMGs (light machine guns), pistols, shotguns, gas guns, tear gas launchers, tear gas shells, tear gas sprays, sound grenades

A joint operation to recover the looted firearms and ammunition began on 4 September last year. According to the police headquarters, 4,390 firearms and 394,112 rounds of ammunition were recovered in the joint drive until 28 July this year.

A joint operation to recover the looted firearms and ammunition began on 4 September last year. According to the police headquarters, 4,390 firearms and 394,112 rounds of ammunition were recovered in the joint drive until 28 July this year.

Police Headquarters figures show that as of 28 July, 1,363 firearms and 257,720 rounds of ammunition were yet to be recovered.

The police, on four April conducted a raid in Khulna city and arrested two youths, Faruk Hossain (23) and Khairul Sardar (27). The police said they recovered two foreign pistols, a shotgun, and seven shotgun rounds from them. According to the police, the recovered shotgun and rounds were marked “BD Police,” indicating they were looted police firearms. During initial questioning, Faruk admitted to buying and selling illegal weapons to various terrorists, extortionists, and criminals.

In Chattogram, police arrested a man named Arif Hossain on allegations of mugging and recovered arms and ammunition looted from the Double Mooring police station in Chattogram on 17 April.

Following the arrest the police said Arif would use the looted arms and ammunition for mugging and robbery in various parts of the city.

On 19 June, police arrested Saidur Rahman Masum, also known as Red Masum (28), from the Jelepara Rani Rashmoni Ghat area in Chattogram. A pistol and four rounds of ammunition were recovered from him.

Chattogram Metropolitan Police Deputy Commissioner (West) Hosain Mohammad Kabir Bhuiya told Prothom Alo that Masum runs a major criminal ring in the city. The pistol recovered from him had been looted from Pahartali police station in Chattogram. Using this weapon, he and his associates committed robberies, dacoities, and other crimes at various locations.

Earlier, on 17 June, van driver Md. Rubel was arrested with a pistol, two magazines, and two bullets. Police said these had been looted from Kotwali police station in Chattogram.

On the night of 3 March in Satkania upazila, Chattogram, two men—Md Nezam Uddin , 45, and Md Salek, 35, —were beaten to death on suspicion of robbery. At the time, the upazila unit of Jamaat-e-Islami claimed the deceased as their members and stated that the victms lured in the name of arbitrations.

Speaking regarding this Chattogram superintendent of police (SP) Md Saiful Alam said at a press conference that before his death, Nezam shot four people, including a local shopkeeper. The pistol he used was looted from the Kotwali police station under the Chattogram Metropolitan Police (CMP).

On 30 November last year, police recovered the bullet-riddled body of a 22-year-old woman, Shahida Akter, from the service lane of the expressway in Dogachhi area of Srinagar, Munshiganj.

In connection with the incident, Shahida’s alleged friend, Tauhid Sheikh, also known as Tanmoy, was arrested. Police later said that Tauhid shot Shahida using a pistol looted from Wari police station in Dhaka. The weapon was subsequently recovered based on his information.

According to the Department of Prisons, during the period before and after the fall of the Awami League government, inmates in several jails across the country caused unrest. A total of 2,240 prisoners escaped, and 94 shotguns and Chinese rifles were looted from various prisons. Among the escaped inmates, 721 remain at large, while 20 of the looted shotguns and Chinese rifles have yet to be recovered.

Brigadier General Syed Md. Motaher Hossain, inspector general (IG) of Prisons, recently told Prothom Alo that 69 of the remaining fugitives are considered high-risk, including 60 death-row convicts and nine militants. Additionally, some Chinese rifles and shotguns looted from prisons have still not been recovered. He noted that, given the current circumstances, these fugitives do not pose a threat capable of causing severe law and order deterioration, but security remains at risk.

Speaking to Prothom Alo on the overall situation, Professor Muhammad Umar Faruq of the Department of Criminology and Police Science at Mawlana Bhashani Science and Technology University said that many looted police weapons have yet to be recovered. Besides, a large number of unlicensed firearms are in circulation. The stolen police weapons have fallen into the hands of criminals, which has fuelled murders, muggings, robberies and extortion.

He stressed that law enforcement agencies must launch a strong drive to recover the weapons looted from police stations and prisons, and to re-arrest the escaped convicts. This must be done before the upcoming national parliamentary elections. Otherwise, doubts about holding a fair election will persist.