Nine held over extortion

Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) detained nine people for their alleged involvements in extortion from Dhaka and Madaripur in last 24 hours.

The arrestees are Mintu Khan, Rakib Khan Titul, Zamal Sheikh, Robiul Islam, Sohel Howlader, Shamim Khan, Billal Khan, Abdul Momin and Rabbi Hossain.

RAB-4 nabbed them in two separate drives in the capital and Rajoir area of Madaripur from Saturday morning to 6:30 am Sunday.

Confirming the arrests, RAB Assistant Director (Legal and Media Wing) Mizanur Rahman said: "During the primary interrogation, they have confessed of extorting people after collecting visiting cards of random individuals for details.”

“They used unregistered SIMs to threaten victims over phone,” he also added.

RAB official Mozammel Haque said: “They don’t have any connections with any terror groups or gangsters. They used fake information to threaten the victims.”

One of the extortion victim’s brother Atik Nawaz said, “They called my elder brother in the last Eid as a member of Purbo Komola Communist Party, demanded Tk 50,000 and threatened to kill or abduct our children. They knew every details of our family and businesses. We paid the full money out of fear but later they want more.”