Ex-Chhatra Dal leader among 4 arrested in Bogura over abduction, extortion; sent to jail

Police have arrested four individuals, including a former local leader of Bangladesh Jatiotabadi Chhatra Dal, in connection with a case filed over allegedly abducting a government employee and extorting Tk2 lakh from him.

The arrestees were identified as Mahmoodul Hasan Mohon, former joint convener of Bogura's Gabtali upazila unit of Chhatra Dal and president of a local madrasah, along with his associates Mehedi Hasan, Robiul Islam Rocky and Ashek ul Islam.

Bogura District Detective Branch (DB) Officer-in-Charge (Inspector) Iqbal Bahar, today (21 February), said they were arrested in drives conducted at different locations in Bogura on Thursday night (19 February). The four were produced before a court yesterday afternoon, which ordered them to be sent to jail.

The victim, Abdul Hannan, a work assistant at the Local Government Engineering Department (LGED), Bogura, filed a case with Bogura Sadar Police Station on 19 February.

According to the case statement, on the afternoon of 16 February, Hannan was having coffee with a woman at a restaurant in the Jaleswaritala area of the town when the accused allegedly entered the restaurant and forcibly took both of them away.

They were reportedly confined in a room, assaulted, and photographed with the woman.

The accused allegedly demanded Tk10 lakh as ransom. Fearing damage to his reputation, Hannan paid Tk20,000 immediately and later withdrew Tk180,000 from a bank and handed it over.

The accused allegedly forced him to sign a non-judicial stamp before releasing him. They continued to pressure him over the phone for the remaining Tk8 lakh from the following day.

After the case was filed, the district Detective Branch conducted a drive and arrested the suspects, police said.