Police: FBI docs found in Shafik Rehman's house

DB police yesterday raided the residence of senior journalist Shafik Rehman in the city. Police said they had seized some documents Shafik had received from an FBI special agent on the plot to abduct and kill prime minister's son Sajeeb Wazed Joy. Shafik Rehman, who is on a five-day remand in the case, was taken to his house around 11am. The raid continued until 2pm, his Secretary Horipodo Das told the Dhaka Tribune. Taleya Rahman, wife of the noted journalist, said the DB members came to the house with her husband and searched the rooms. They seized some documents and his passports, she said, adding that the couple was given some time for talks. Also executive director of Democracy Watch, Taleya said quoting Shafik that he had not been tortured or intimidated in remand, rather the police behaved with him cordially. But he was upset for not getting division in jail. He also feared that he would not be given bail and might have to stay in jail for a long time. An official involved in the investigation said that during the raid they had collected some confidential documents that include the licence plate number of Joy's car, and his US home and office addresses. During the interrogation, Shafik admitted that he had got some documents provided by former FBI special agent Robert Lustyik and kept those at his home. He also suggested that the police would not find those documents unless he accompanied them during the drive. Meanwhile, Monirul Islam, additional commissioner of Counter-Terrorism and Transnational Crime Unit, said that sometime in 2012, Shafik had met twice with JaSaS vice-president's son Rizve Ahmed Caesar, Lustyik, and Lustyik's friend Johannes Thaler, and learnt about the plot to abduct and murder Joy. Rizve, Lustyik and Thaler are currently serving jail sentences in the US. Rizve had bribed Lustyik to acquire the confidential information about Joy. Rizve reportedly sent emails containing documents that described Joy’s day-to-day movement to Milton Bhuiyan, a business person living in New York’s Brooklyn. Milton then mailed the documents to Mahmudur Rahman, detained acting chief of the Daily Amar Desh newspaper. Milton also maintained regular communication with Shafik, which led the police to suspect that the latter might got those documents too, Monirul said. Asked if BNP Senior Vice-Chairman Tarique Rahman was involved in the plot, Monirul said that they were conducting an in-depth investigation into the case, and anyone else involved in the incident would be brought to trial. The case was filed by DB Inspector Fazlur Rahman with Paltan police in August last year. The plaintiff named BNP’s cultural wing JaSaS Vice-President Mohammad Ullah Mamun and a number of unidentified BNP leaders as accused in the case. The DB police on Monday sought remand of Mahmudur Rahman in the case. Hearing on the appeal would be held on April 25. Meanwhile, the process of sending three members of the DB police to the USA to look into the matter is also under way.