2 arrested over trafficking Bangladeshis to Malaysia, torture for ransom

The Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) has arrested two suspected members of a human trafficking ring for allegedly trafficking people to Malaysia under the pretext of high-paying jobs and subsequently torturing them to extort ransom.

The arrested individuals were identified as Md Mostafa, 46, and Md Mohsin Mia, 42.

Confirming the matter today (17 January), RAB-4 Media Officer KN Roy Niti told the media that acting on a tip-off, a joint investigative team of RAB-4 and RAB-9 conducted a raid in Satmora area under Nabiganj Police Station in Brahmanbaria district on 15 January and arrested the two individuals.

"There are pending human trafficking cases against them. They had been trafficking people to Malaysia under the banner of a private agency, promising high salaries," he added.

The RAB official further stated that a victim, Abdul Khalek, fell prey to this ring and went to Malaysia, where he suffered severe physical abuse. He later returned to Bangladesh and filed a case at Kafrul Police Station.

According to the case statement, Abdul Khalek, 22, was previously acquainted with the two arrested individuals, through whom he was introduced to the rest of the agency members.

The accused Md Mostafa proposed sending Khalek abroad in exchange for a contract of Tk15 lakh. Subsequently, in 2021, Khalek paid Tk5 lakhs in cash to the agency, in the presence of the arrested individuals, for travelling to the US via Malaysia. After his visa was issued, he paid an additional TK10 lakh.

The arrested individuals sent Khalek to Malaysia in January 2023 through the agency. There, a person named Bappi, known to them, took Khalek to his residence. Instead of sending him to the US, he was held at a cement factory in Malaysia and forced to perform labour under severe physical abuse, according to the case statement.

The perpetrators also sent videos of the torture to Khalek's family to demand ransom. His relatives paid TK3 lakh to the arrested individuals as ransom, but this did not secure his release.

At one point, unable to endure the abuse, Khalek managed to obtain his passport through a Bangladeshi broker named Fakir in Malaysia for TK30,000. However, the broker did not return him to Bangladesh and allegedly sold him to a human organ trafficking syndicate. Eventually, the syndicate attempted to transfer him to an illegal clinic to sell his eyes, ears, and kidneys.

Malaysian police intercepted the vehicle at a road checkpoint, while the traffickers fled, leaving Khalek blindfolded. Khalek was subsequently imprisoned for four months as an illegal resident.

He returned to Bangladesh in 2025 and filed a case at Kafrul Police Station following court directives.