The Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) arrested an arms dealer from a launch ghat in Barisal city on Friday morning.
The arrested was identified as Babul Hawlader alias Boma Babul, and was found with foreign guns, magazines, bullets, bombs and bomb-making gunpowder.
During a press conference at the RAB office on Friday around 11:30pm, RAB-8 Deputy Director Major Jahangir Alam said that Babul supplied most of the hand grenades, cocktails, detonated in different parts of the country during the local government elections.
RAB members were keeping track of his activities for a long time, he said.
Major Jahangir said that RAB came to know that Babul was staying in Kotwali police station area along with various types of explosives including weapons.
After verifying the information, a special operation team led by RAB-8 CPC-2 Faridpur Camp Company Commander Superintendent of Police Shafiqul Islam and Explosives Squad Commander Additional Superintendent of Police Khorshed Alam raided the area on Friday morning and arrested him.
During the arrest, one foreign pistol, two magazines, four rounds of ammunition, three fresh bombs, 800 grams of bomb-making gunpowder and other materials were recovered from him like 24 matches, 50 marbles, two packets of ball-bearings, 10 zarda boxes, 12 explosive-filled pens, five red tapes, five-meter electric wires in three colors, two kg pieces of glass and two SIM cards used for buying and selling weapons and bombs, one mobile phone and TK1,520 in cash.
After his capture, Babul confessed to being a professional arms dealer and a skilled bomb-maker, said RAB.
He faces several cases filed for murder, theft, drugs, violence against women and violence amongst other crimes.
