Four witnesses gave statements before separate Dhaka courts in a case filed over the July 1 militant attack on a Spanish restaurant in the capital’s Gulshan area that left 22 people including 17 foreigners killed.
The judges of the Dhaka's Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Court recorded their statements after Inspector Humayun Kabir of the Counter-Terrorism and Transnational Crimes unit, also the investigation officer of the case, produced them before the courts.
The witnesses are Al-Amin Chowdhury, cashier of the Holey Artisan Bakery; its two staff – Miraz Hossain and Russell Mahmud; and Baset Sarder, a driver of the Metro Rail project officials killed during the attack.
The case was filed with Gulshan police under the Anti-Terrorism Act on July 4 against the five slain militants and several unidentified people in connection with the attack.
Another Dhaka court on July 6 asked the IO of the case to submit the probe report by August 24.
According to the case, seven gunmen stormed the restaurant, opened fire and took around 40 people, including restaurant staff and guests – hostage on July 1.
Twenty hostages – nine Italians, seven Japanese, one Indian, one Bangladeshi-born American and two Bangladeshis – were killed on that night.
Two senior police officers – Banani police OC Salauddin Ahmed Khan and DB assistant commissioner Robiul Karim – were killed as they tried to rescue the hostages.
Thirteen people, including three foreigners, were rescued while 20 bodies of the hostages were recovered from the restaurant after a commando operation the next morning. Six of the seven gunmen were killed during the drive, the case says.
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