The Detective Branch (DB) of the Chattogram Metropolitan Police (CMP) has arrested an alleged armed criminal and recovered a foreign-made pistol along with a magazine in Bayezid Bostami area of Chattogram.
The matter was disclosed at a press conference held on Sunday noon at the media centre of the CMP Commissioner’s office.
The arrestee was identified as Mohammad Saiful Islam, 44, a resident of the Char Hair Molla Bazar area in Hatia, Noakhali. He currently resides as a tenant in the Bibirhat area under the Panchlaish Police Station in Chattogram.
Muhammad Faisal Ahmed, Additional Commissioner (Crime & Operations) of the CMP, stated that “Team 31” of the DB North Division conducted a special drive on 18 April based on a tip-off. The team set up a checkpoint in front of the ‘Popular Medical Hall’ pharmacy at the Kamarabad crossing in Aturar Depo.
When the police signalled a rented CNG-run auto-rickshaw to stop, a passenger attempted to flee on foot. The DB team chased and apprehended him, subsequently recovering a US-made pistol and a magazine during a search conducted in the presence of witnesses. No bullets were found with the weapon.
According to the police, Saiful is an accused in at least five regular cases involving arms, drugs, and theft filed with various CMP stations. During primary interrogation, the arrestee reportedly confessed to using the weapon for terrorist activities and extortion in several areas, including Oxygen, Baluchara, Hamjarbagh, and Muradpur.
Police confirmed that a case is being processed at the Bayezid Bostami Police Station and they intend to seek a remand from the court for further questioning to trace the source of the firearm.
Responding to reporters, Additional Commissioner Faisal Ahmed noted that the DB and local police are working jointly to control crime in the city.
He revealed that between 100 and 200 criminals have been arrested in the last two to three months.
Furthermore, the authorities are maintaining surveillance on several terrorists who were recently released on bail, including Mobarak Hossain Imon. Special police drives to recover illegal arms are also ongoing in Panchlaish, Bakalia, and Chawkbazar areas.
