Joint operations lead to the arrest of 45 as Mohammadpur becomes a hotspot for crime

The Mohammadpur area in the capital has increasingly become a crime hotspot, with a surge in muggings, robberies, gunfights, thefts, and murders, presenting significant challenges for law enforcement agencies struggling to maintain control. Police report that many crime incidents remain unreported, as victims are often unwilling to file cases. In response, law enforcement agencies conducted joint operations from 6:00 pm to 11:00 pm on Saturday, arresting 45 individuals suspected of involvement in criminal activities, including those connected to murder cases, muggers, robbers, and members of teenage gangs.

The Bangladesh Army, Rapid Action Battalion, and police were involved in the joint operations, seizing nine locally-made sharp weapons in the Dhaka Udyan, Chand Udyan, and Nabodaya Housing areas of Mohammadpur, according to a press release from the Inter-Services Public Relations Directorate. Police reported the additional arrest of a murder case suspect at a local camp on Sunday.

A tense atmosphere has prevailed since Saturday evening in the camp for the Urdu-speaking community, following a gunfight between two groups of alleged drug peddlers, which left four people injured, including a child. Three of the injured were admitted to Shaheed Suhrawardy Medical College Hospital, and the child, Sazzad Hossain, 13, was taken to Dhaka Medical College Hospital. Sazzad’s mother, Joynob Begum, reported that her son was critically injured while fetching water.

Mohammadpur Police Station Inspector (Investigation) Md Hafizur Rahman reported that the 46 detainees were brought before a Dhaka metropolitan magistrate on Sunday, resulting in 30 individuals being sent to jail on various charges, while 16 were fined and released after providing written undertakings. Later on Sunday, four more individuals from the Urdu-speaking camp were detained for questioning.

On Sunday, a substantial deployment of army and police personnel surrounded the camp area, as social organization members, including students, approached the Mohammadpur police station, attributing the deteriorating law and order to police inaction and demanding improvements within 72 hours.

Dhaka Metropolitan Police’s Additional Deputy Commissioner for the Tejgaon zone, Ziaul Haque, acknowledged challenges in manpower and vehicle resources, requesting public cooperation to combat muggings. Deputy Commissioner Mohammad Ruhul Kabir Khan announced plans for a temporary joint camp of the army and police at Mohammadpur Government High School, near the Urdu-speaking camp, aiming to restore normalcy within a day or two.

On Sunday evening, police arrested two blacksmiths and seized 40 machetes. Mohammadpur Police Station had previously recorded 68 cases in September, including murders, rapes, muggings, abductions, arms recoveries, drug-related offenses, and pornography. Officer-in-Charge Ali Iftekhar Hasan noted that many victims refrain from filing official complaints.

In recent incidents, a group posing as Army and RAB personnel looted cash, gold, and phones from a Mohammadpur apartment on October 12, leading to the subsequent arrest of eight robbery suspects, including five former military personnel. Additionally, a mini supershop was robbed by a group of youths in Basila Housing on October 25.