‘Gunfight’ in Narsingdi
6 ‘muggers’ killed
Rab refuses to disclose identity of robbed businessman
Six alleged muggers were killed and three others injured in a gunfight between the Rapid Action Battalion and the gang fleeing after mugging a businessman in Narsingdi yesterday.
Two Rab members were also wounded during the one-hour shootout that began around 3:00pm, Lt Col Abu Hena Md Mustafa, Narsingdi district commanding officer of Rab-11, told The Daily Star.
The identities of the dead were not immediately available.
Abu Hena said the muggers were fleeing in a microbus after snatching Tk 40,000 from a businessman at Bridge No 5 on Narsingdi-Madanganj road, around 50km northeast of the capital.
The elite force official, however, did not disclose the identity of the businessman on “safety grounds”, but said details of the incident would be shared with the media at a press conference. He did not give any date for the conference either.
He said the businessman called the Rab office from his cellphone to inform them of the incident. Chased, the snatchers opened fire on the Rab men to make an escape, prompting the force to fire back.
At one stage of the gunfight, the microbus the muggers were in stopped and four of them tried to run away with the money, shooting at the Rab personnel.
When the gunfight ended around 4:00pm, four of the muggers were found lying dead on the ground while two, including the driver, were dead inside the microbus, said the Rab official.
Rab later recovered four pistols, two revolvers, one pipe gun and 10 bullets from the scene, he added.
The elite force also seized the bullet-riddled microbus and the mugged money and arrested the injured snatchers.
Police said the injured Rab members are Sub-inspector Shahid, 39, and soldier Saiful Islam, 28, while the injured muggers are Masum, 28, Amar Biswas, 38, and Shaon, 28.
The injured were admitted to Narsingdi Sadar Hospital, said Md Asaduzzaman, officer-in-charge of Narsingdi Model Police Station.
Later at night, two of the injured muggers — Masum and Shaon — were sent to Dhaka Medical College Hospital, and the third — Amar Biswas — was taken to the police station for interrogation.
No witness accounts of the incident were available.
-With The Daily Star input
