Police have arrested former Vice-Chancellor of Begum Rokeya University, Rangpur (BRUR) Dr Md Hasibur Rashid in connection with the killing of university student Abu Sayeed.
A team from Mohammadpur Police Station conducted a raid in the capital on Saturday and took him into custody.
Md Jewel Rana, additional deputy commissioner (ADC) of Dhaka Metropolitan Police’s Mohammadpur Zone, said Dr Rashid is a convicted accused in crimes against humanity case linked to the July 2024 mass uprising.
According to officials, the International Crimes Tribunal sentenced him to 10 years in prison on April 9 in connection with the killing. Police said further legal proceedings are underway.
In the same verdict, the tribunal sentenced two police personnel to death and handed down various prison terms to 28 others.
Abu Sayeed, a student of BRUR in Rangpur, was shot dead on July 16, 2024, during an anti-discrimination protest. Video footage of the incident, which later went viral on social media, showed him standing on the road with his arms outstretched when police opened fire, triggering nationwide outrage.
Following the killing, university students staged protests and laid siege to the vice-chancellor’s residence, demanding his resignation. Dr Rashid later left the campus under law enforcement protection and resigned from his post on August 8.