Dr Abdullah Al Mamun, although he is the registrar of the state-run National Institute of Mental Health and Hospital (NIMH), used to receive money from private hospitals.
Reports suggest that he used to refer the institute’s own patients to shady, unauthorized private health entities that lacked proper licensing and qualified doctors.
By doing so, the NIMH registrar used to get paid large sums of money – 30% of the total amount charged from the patients – as commission by these hospitals.
Senior Assistant Superintendent of Police Anisul Karim Shipon – who was murdered in a brutal beating by the staff of such an unlicensed private health centre – is the latest victim of this registrar's relentless greed for money.
On Tuesday, police finally arrested Dr Mamun and took him on a two-day remand for his alleged involvement in the murder of Senior ASP Anisul.
Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Mohammad Shahidul Islam issued the remand order after Md Faruk Mollah, inspector of Adabar police station and investigating officer (IO) of the case, produced him in court seeking a 10-day remand.
Also Read- ASP Anisul Murder: Everything wrong about Mind Aid Hospital
Earlier in the day, police arrested the NIHM registrar from the city’s Sher-e-Bangla Nagar area.
Till now, 13 people have been arrested in connection with the police official’s death.
On November 9, when Senior ASP Anisul, suffering from mental illness, was brought to NIMH, Dr Mamun referred him to Adabar’s Mind Aid Hospital instead of admitting the police officer at the government institute, said Deputy Commissioner (DC) of Tejgaon Division of Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) Harun-Ur-Rashid.
For referring a patient out of the NIMH, Dr Mamun used to get a 30% commission, he added.
“Mamun also phoned the manager of the private hospital on the day of the murder to confirm Anisul’s arrival,” he added.
Seized CCTV footage has shown that staffers of Mind Aid Hospital forcibly took the senior police official to the observation room of the hospital and beat him repeatedly after he was transferred there.
According to DC Harun, Dr Mamun used to practise at Mind Aid Hospital, Mind Royal and Dhaka Clinic in Tangail.
“Dr Mamun, during our initial interrogation, confessed to sending patients to other hospitals via brokers for commission money.
“NIMH Registrar Dr Mamun and the brokers he works with do not send all patients to private hospitals, but only those who are affluent,” added the DC.
The deputy commissioner said: “Around 20 to 25 brokers have so far been arrested in the last few days and such drives will continue.”
2 more confess
Two more Mind Aid Hospital employees have given confessional statements over their involvement in ASP Anisul’s murder.
Metropolitan Magistrate Debabrata Biswas recorded their statements after Inspector Faruk Mollah produced the accused before the court on Tuesday.
The two employees are Md Tanvir Hasan and ward boy Md Tanim Mollah.
After recording their confessions, the court sent them to jail.
Also Read- ASP Anisul murder: 2 Mind Aid Hospital employees confess
With the latest development, altogether six of the accused have so far provided their confessional statements in court.
The other four are – ward boys Asim Chandra Pal, Masud Khan, Sajeeb Chowdhury, and marketing manager Arif Mahmud.
So far, 13 people have been arrested in connection with ASP Anisul’s death.
JU teachers, students protest over ASP Anisul murder
Meanwhile, the teachers, employees, and students of Jahangirnagar University’s (JU) biochemistry and molecular biology department staged a demonstration on the campus protesting the death of ASP Anisul.
Over 150 teachers, employees, and students of the department organized a human chain on the Dhaka-Aricha highway adjacent to the main gate of the university.
Anisul Karim Shipon was a 31st BCS officer and former student (33rd batch) of the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at JU.
Anisul had been suffering from mental illness and was brought to Dhaka’s Mind Aid Hospital for treatment on November 9.
The accused forcibly took the victim to the observation room of the hospital and beat him repeatedly.
The hospital staff then informed Anisul’s family that he had fainted.
And when the police officer's relatives took him to the National Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases, he was declared dead.
Anisul's father filed a case with Adabor police station against 15 people the following day.