Saudul Islam Montu, Betagi (Barguna)

Rifat Bin Rimon, a brave young man from Betagi upazila, is living a life of immense physical agony with nearly 80 shotgun pellets still embedded under the skin of his injured leg.

Nearly three weeks after single-handedly fighting off a gang of 10 armed robbers, Rimon is yet to return to a normal life, carrying deep internal wounds and a heavily bandaged limb.

The incident occurred during the early hours of May 15 at the residence of Md. Khalil, a retired police member, located in the Bailey Bridge area of Betagi Sadar Union. According to case details, a gang of approximately 10 armed robbers broke into the house in the dead of night. Displaying extraordinary courage, Rimon engaged in a fierce physical struggle with the intruders entirely on his own. After a grueling brawl, he managed to push all ten robbers out of the main house. However, as he slammed and locked the residential door, the thwarted bandits fired a shotgun through the crevices of the door, hitting Rimon directly in the leg and leaving him critically injured.

Family members immediately rescued the bloodied youth and rushed him to the Betagi Upazila Health Complex, from where he was shifted to Sher-e-Bangla Medical College and Hospital in Barisal as his condition deteriorated. For advanced management, he was later moved to the BDM Hospital and Diagnostic Center on Humayun Road in Mohammadpur, Dhaka. There, noted orthopedic surgeon Professor Dr. A.K.M. Zahir Uddin performed a complex surgery, successfully extracting 38 pellets from his leg. However, surgeons had to leave 80 pellets behind due to medical complications.

Rimon is currently undergoing specialized treatment under Dr. Hafizur Rahman Mujahid, an orthopedic surgeon at Khidmah Hospital Private Limited. Due to unhealed deep tissue wounds and the remaining sub-dermal pellets, attending physicians have strongly advised his family to take him to India for advanced specialized surgery to ensure a full recovery.

Local residents have hailed Rimon as the "brave son" of the community, praising his rare and exemplary heroism in risking his life to defend his family. However, the audacious midnight raid by a large armed gang has triggered deep panic across the neighborhood. Expressing severe anxiety over local security, residents demanded the immediate identification and arrest of the entire robbery ring to prevent future incidents. They also urged the local administration and senior government officials to come forward and bear the heavy medical expenses of Rimon's treatment.

My son showed immense bravery and took bullets to save us, but now, hardly anyone comes to check on him. We are spending a massive amount of money on his continuous treatment, yet he is far from a complete recovery., Reena Begum, mother of the injured youth said.

When contacted, the OC of Betagi Police Station, Md. Harun-or-Rashid, stated that the police department is consistently monitoring Rimon's health condition.

The police chief confirmed that two suspects have already been arrested in connection with the robbery and sent to jail via judicial orders. He added that specialized police drives are actively underway to recover the looted goods and apprehend the remaining members of the dangerous gang.