CCTV footage has emerged showing how Raja, alias “Picchi Raja”, a suspected drug dealer from Mohammadpur, escaped from a prison van in Dhaka, with police investigators saying an officer helped him get out of the vehicle.
Several CCTV clips obtained on Tuesday evening show the prison van stopping on a busy road in Tantibazar at around 5:58pm on September 27.
The footage shows the rear door of the van being opened as it moved slowly through traffic. Three masked people then stepped out one after another — two accused persons and a police officer.
The prison van had left a Dhaka court that evening carrying 30 accused persons to Kashimpur Jail in Gazipur.
According to the police investigation, when the van reached the area in front of Popular Diagnostic Centre in Tantibazar, it slowed down amid a traffic jam. Sub-Inspector Probir Kumar Biswas, who was in charge of the van, opened the rear door, went inside, and brought out two accused persons.
The first was Raja. The second was Khairul Bashar, owner of Cambrian School and College.
CCTV footage shows Khairul, wearing a white shirt, getting off the van and walking onto the road alongside Raja. After walking a short distance, Khairul returned to the van within seconds and took a seat beside the driver.
Raja, however, continued walking. SI Probir Kumar Biswas, wearing a red shirt, can be seen following him.
Police said Raja was allowed to leave the van so he could meet family members and subsequently escape. Khairul was allegedly allowed to sit beside the driver because the van was air-conditioned.
Investigators said the plan to help Raja escape had been made two days before the incident. The van driver and Raja’s sister, Taslima, were allegedly involved in the plan.
SI Probir Kumar Biswas, van driver Naik Kamal Hossain and Taslima have been arrested in connection with the incident.
On Tuesday, Gazipur Metropolitan Magistrate Court Judge Zubayer Rashid granted four days of remand for the three accused.
Gazipur Metropolitan Police Commissioner Israil Howlader said at a press conference on Tuesday that several other people had also been found to be involved in Raja’s escape, including a private car driver and one of his close relatives.
However, police have not yet disclosed which vehicle Raja got into after leaving the prison van or where he went.
Law enforcement agencies have increased surveillance at different points along the country’s borders in an effort to arrest him, police said.
Raja was arrested at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka on May 19 while returning from Nepal with his wife and brother-in-law. He had been in jail in connection with several cases.
