Police detained 14 individuals on Monday night for posting advertisements to sell shoes on Facebook after vandalizing and looting a Bata showroom in Sylhet, following a mass protest against Israeli attacks on Gaza.
Kotwali police station Officer-in-Charge (OC) Ziaul Haque confirmed the arrests on Tuesday.
He stated that the detainees would be officially arrested in a case and presented before the court.
He added that after looting the shoes, the suspects posted ads for their sale on various Facebook profiles and pages. A raid was carried out, and the stolen shoes were recovered.
Bata condemns vandalism of Bangladesh showroomsThe arrestees are Rajon, Iman, 19, Rakib, 19, Abdul Motaleb, 35, Mizan Ahmed, 30, Sabbir Ahmed, 19, Junaid Ahmed, 19, Robin Mia, 20, Syed Alamin Tushar, 29, Mostakin Ahmed Tuhin, 19, Delwar Hossain, 30, Riyad, 24, Tuhin, 24, and Al Nafiu, 19.
Inspector General of Police Baharul Alam on Monday instructed police officers to arrest individuals responsible for vandalizing shops and businesses in Bogra, Sylhet, Cox’s Bazar and several other cities across the country.
"We have video footage of the attackers. They are being identified and will be arrested immediately. Police teams are currently working on this," the Chief Adviser’s Press Wing quoted the police chief as saying on Monday.
"The government does not impede any lawful protests. However, we will not tolerate any criminal acts under the guise of protest.”
Notably, protests erupted across Bangladesh, with some mobs targeting businesses perceived to have links to Israel, including Bata, KFC and Pizza Hut, in districts such as Bogra, Sylhet and Cox’s Bazar.
The protests condemned Israeli actions in Gaza and called for a boycott of Israeli-affiliated products.
