A CCTV footage collected by detectives from Mirpur police station yesterday showed four police informants, along with four policemen, were involved in torturing businessman Mahbubur Rahman Sujon to death in custody.
Earlier on the night of July 12, a team from Mirpur police picked up Sujon, his wife Mamataj Sultana Luchi and their five-year-old son Mosharraf from his residence in capital’s Shankar and tortured Sujon to death on early hours of the next day.
Following the death of the trader, a murder case was filed against four policemen and four of their informants. All of the accused policemen were suspended from duty after filling of the case.
Of the accused, Sub-Inspector Zahidur Rahman and an informant Nasim Sheikh have been arrested while three other policemen, Assistant SI Raj Kumer and two constables Anwar Hossain and Rashedul Islam and three informants – Khokan, Faisal and Palash went into hidings.
Sub-Inspector Rakibul Islam of Mirpur police station, who filed the case, also mentioned in the case statement that the video footage captured by a CCTV camera installed inside the police station showed that the accused eight persons had tortured Sujon to death together.
At the same time, the victim's wife Mamataj Sultana Luchi also said her husband was tortured by the policemen and their informants at their house and while being detained at the police station.
Contacted, Deputy Commissioner of Police at Mirpur Division Imtiyaz Ahmed acknowledged the CCTV footage and the participation of the police informants in torturing the trader under the police custody.
The DC, however, declined to make a statement in this regards saying: “Since the case was now being investigated by the Detective Branch, I should not say anything in this regard.”
Talking to the Dhaka Tribune, Masudur Rahman, deputy commissioner at the Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) Media Centre, said the video footage was being analysed by the investigators, and declined to comment further over the issue.
Habibur Rahman Opu, a cousin of deceased trader, said SI Zahidur and other policemen along with their informants tortured Sujon to death because he refusal of pay Tk1 lakh as a monthly extortion for running his business.
A forensic test report prepared by experts at the Dhaka Medical College noted that Sujon died of a brain haemorrhage and electric shock.
Sources inside the police said the accused SI Zahidur Rahman had earlier tortured three more persons to death, namely Nurul Islam and Zaved and Bihari youth Johnny.
