Neo-JMB's 'Bomaru Mamun' behind recent bomb scares, police say; manhunt on

Police are hunting for Nazmul Hasan Mamun, alias "Bomaru Mamun," identifying the Neo-JMB operative as the key mastermind behind a series of recent bomb explosions and recoveries across the capital and its surrounding areas after he came out on bail in September 2024.

According to officials from the police's Counter Terrorism and Transnational Crime (CTTC) unit, the investigation into the recent incidents gained significant momentum following the arrest of Mamun's associate, Arif, on Tuesday evening.

After Arif's arrest, police conducted an overnight raid from that evening until 1:45am at his hideout in Shyampur, Savar, recovering 13 pipe bombs and various bomb-making chemicals.

Investigators said information obtained during Arif's interrogation further confirmed Mamun's direct involvement in the recent series of bomb scares.

Amid the ongoing drive to capture Mamun, police recovered another "pressure cooker bomb" Wednesday morning inside a blue drum in a field near the Laltek Ghora Mosque in Goperbari, Savar.

Briefing reporters about the operations, CTTC chief DMP Additional Police Commissioner Mohammad Shamsul Haque said the unit began identifying the masterminds immediately after bombs and bomb-like objects were recovered from various locations, adding that information regarding Mamun's involvement was obtained following Arif's arrest and that all-out efforts are underway to arrest Mamun.

Investigating officers revealed that Mamun and Arif have been linked to multiple incidents occurring between December and July this year in Keraniganj, Jatrabari, Cumilla, Sayedabad, Motijheel, and Ashulia.

The sequence began in December with an explosion during bomb-making at a madrasah in Keraniganj.

In February, a suspect stabbed a police officer and fled, leaving a bag full of bombs during a police search in Jatrabari.

This was followed in March by an explosion at a Shiva temple in Cumilla and another blast during a police search in Sayedabad

Most recently in July, a "pipe bomb" hidden inside an umbrella was left under the Motijheel Metrorail Station, while a "pressure cooker bomb" was left at a tea stall in Charabag, Ashulia.

How a college student turned into a bomb maker

According to a high-level intelligence document obtained by The Business Standard, Mamun passed his SSC exams in 2014 and enrolled in a college in Dhaka's Uttara, but failed two subjects in his HSC exams in 2016. 

During that time, his life took a radical turn when he was targeted on Facebook by an account named "Abu Muslimah."

The account operator, later identified as Abir alias Muaz, initially shared religious posts and videos before introducing radical ideological lures. In mid-2016, Mamun met Abir in person at a park in Uttara Sector 7, where he was persuaded to abandon formal education and family life in the form of a "da'wah" (invitation) in favour of "radical activities."

Following the meeting, their communications shifted from Facebook to an encrypted messaging application named "Threema", where Mamun was given the organisational code name "Abdullah".

In late October 2016, Mamun left his home and was taken to a covert hideout in Chattogram alongside other youths, where they were indoctrinated with radical teachings.

About a month and a half later, Mamun was shifted to another hideout in Sylhet, where his focus transitioned directly to explosives training.

By early 2017, Mamun was assigned to supply explosives across various hideouts.

He was later arrested and sent to prison on charges of supplying the bomb used in the 2017 suicide attack at Hotel Olio International in Panthapath, which killed one person.

Exploiting the political transition after the July Uprising, Mamun secured bail in September 2024.

Although a Dhaka court acquitted all accused in the Hotel Olio case in January, observing them to be political activists opposed to the fallen Awami League regime, his name has resurfaced as the main suspect behind the recent wave of explosives recovered across the capital.