RAB detains mastermind of Gazipur RMG factory robbery, 5 others

The Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) has detained six suspected robbers, including the alleged mastermind of the robbery that took place in an RMG factory in Kaliakair, Gazipur on January 7 this year. The suspects were arrested during separate drives conducted in a number of districts on Sunday. The RAB officials identified them as Mahbubur Rahman alias Firoj Mollah alias Abdul Khalek Mia (51) who is the suspected mastermind, Faruk Hossain alias Babul alias Alam Shikdar (50), Khalilur Rahman Rana alias Rana Sarder alias Rana alias Firoj (40), Belayet Hossain Akond alias Belayet (42), Iqbal Hossain Rubel (37) and Ujjal Bishwas (34). RAB Legal and Media Wing's Senior Assistant Director Mizanur Rahman Bhuiyan confirmed the matter to the Dhaka Tribune on Monday morning. Later at a press briefing the same day, RAB Legal and Media Wing Director Mufti Mahmud Khan said the elite force had information that the suspects had scattered to different districts to hide after robbing Tk3.41 crore from RMG factory Knit Plus Ltd. “So we conducted raids in Khulna, Rajshahi, Comilla, Barisal, Dhaka and Gopalganj districts on Sunday and detained all of them with Tk1.17 crore of the looted money,” he told reporters. During the drives, RAB also recovered a firearm, five rounds of bullets, one truck and some RMG factory equipment that the suspects supposedly bought with the stolen money. Describing the robbery, the media chief of RAB said Mahbubur and Faruk took the jobs of security guards at the factory through a private security company and started working there on December 2, 2016. They used their aliases – Mahbubur as Abdul Khalek and Faruk as Alam Shikdar – to apply for the jobs. On the day of the robbery, Mahbubur and Faruk fed the other security guards biscuits and drinks spiked with sedatives. When the security guards fell unconscious, Mahbubur and Faruk let Rana, Belayet and Rubel in and the five men robbed the factory before fleeing. The factory management filed a case regarding the robbery with Kaliakair police the next day. During initial interrogation, the robbers told RAB that they had divided the money among themselves and invested it, Mahmud Khan said. Ujjal was not directly involved in the robbery, but he knew of the robbery and also had Tk9 lakh of Rana's share of the loot in his possession, which is why he was arrested, he added. “They [the suspects] are members of an organised gang of robbers and we are taking legal actions against them. We are also working to find out if their gang has more robbers,” he further said.