Staff Correspondent, Narayanganj

Rupali (20), the mother of Sumaiya, who was severely burned in a gas explosion in Siddhirganj, Narayanganj, has passed away. She succumbed to her injuries at 5:45 AM on Sunday, March 9, while undergoing treatment. This raises the death toll from the incident to three out of the eight injured victims.

Dr. Shaon Bin Rahman, a residential surgeon at the National Burn and Plastic Surgery Institute, confirmed the news. Rupali had suffered 34% burns and was battling for her life in the hospital.

Earlier, on Saturday, March 8, two other victims, Mohammad Hannan (40) and Rupali’s 18-month-old daughter Sumaiya, had also died at the same hospital. Hannan had suffered 45% burns, while Sumaiya had 44% burns.

The explosion occurred in a tin-shed house due to a gas pipeline leak, injuring eight members from two families, including four children. The other victims currently receiving treatment include Rupali’s husband, Sohag (23), Hannan’s wife, Noorjahan Akter Lucky (30), and their children Jannat (3), Samiya (9), and Sabbir (16).

Five ncluding two police officers arrested for robbing expats in N’ganj

A gang posing as law enforcement officers robbed expatriates in Narayanganj. The criminals looted various valuables from the victims.

On Saturday, law enforcement conducted raids in Purbachal, Rupganj, and Mirpur Cantonment in Dhaka, arresting five gang members, including two police officers and one Navy personnel. Several stolen items were recovered during the operation.

The arrested individuals include dismissed police constable Kajol Islam, serving police constable Rubel, dismissed Navy member Riazul Jannat, as well as Siadat Raj and Rahmat Ali.

Victim Jasim Uddin, a businessman from Cox’s Bazar, recounted the incident. He and his friends Salahuddin and Shahid have been running a business in New Market, Dhaka, importing goods from Dubai. They became acquainted with a man named Sajib from Mirpur while in Dubai, and he later joined their business.

On Thursday morning, the group of four returned to Bangladesh with imported goods. While traveling from the airport to New Market, a gang of 8-9 individuals, including Sajib’s associates, intercepted them. Posing as law enforcement officers, the criminals accused them of carrying illegal goods and insisted on taking them to the police station.

Initially, the victims resisted, but they were forcibly taken into a double-cabin police pickup and a private car, while Sajib managed to escape. Instead of being taken to a police station, the victims were driven to an isolated location on Purbachal 300 Feet Road. The criminals then demanded a ransom of 5 million BDT (50 lakh taka) and subjected them to various forms of harassment when they refused to pay.

Once the incident became public, law enforcement raided Mirpur Cantonment, arresting three gang members and recovering stolen goods. Additionally, two more suspects, including police constable Rubel, were captured in Purbachal’s Habib Nagar with help from locals.

The recovered items included 16 tola of gold jewelry, 7 laptops, 28 mobile phones, 53 cartons of cigarettes, 59 cans of powdered milk, 78 sets of three-piece garments, and 384 pieces of cosmetic creams. The stolen vehicles, a police double cabin pickup truck, a private car, handcuffs, a walkie-talkie, and law enforcement uniforms were also seized.

Rupganj Police Station OC Liaquat Ali stated that the gang specialized in posing as law enforcement officers to rob expatriates. The arrested individuals included a former police officer and a former Navy member. Most of the stolen goods were recovered, and a case has been filed at Rupganj Police Station.