Rapid Action Battalion (Rab) members have arrested three suspected extortionists for torturing a man and his son after kidnapping them in the capital’s Kalyanpur area.
The arrestees were Md Billal, Md Jumman, and Sheikh Md Faisal.
They were arrested during a drive in Darus Salam area on Saturday, said RAB-4 Company Commander Additional Superintendent of Police KN Roy Niyoti at a press briefing held at the battalion headquarters in the capital on Saturday.
According to RAB, victim Md Mahfuzur Rahman, a businessman and resident of Sabujbagh, was returning home on a motorbike with his son from a relative’s house in Mohammadpur shortly after 12:30am on July 2.
When they stopped at a shop beneath Darus Salam Jame Mosque in Kalyanpur to buy water, five to six men held them hostage at gunpoint with local weapons and took them through an alley to an old building nearby.
The attackers threatened and physically tortured them and demanded Tk500,000 as extortion money. They searched his bank accounts, mobile banking services and mobile phone but failed to find sufficient funds.
They then forced him to call relatives and arrange money, said the RAB official. Later, they collected Tk50,000 from several acquaintances and the victim’s cousin.
Before releasing them, the suspects recorded videos of the victims and threatened them with severe consequences if they informed police or anyone else about the incident.
Mahfuzur Rahman later received treatment at Mugda Medical Hospital for two days. Following a case filed with Darus Salam Police Station, RAB-4 identified the suspects and conducted an operation in the area, leading to the arrests.
Replying to a question, ASP KN Roy Niyoti said the accused were involved in various criminal activities including extortion, drug-related offences and establishing dominance in Darus Salam, Shah Ali, Mirpur and surrounding areas of Dhaka.
The arrestees were handed over to the police station concerned, and legal proceedings against them are underway, he added.
