Bangladesh News

A court here yesterday sentenced four members of outlawed militant outfit Jama’tul Mujaheedin Bangladesh (JMB) to 26 years’ rigorous imprisonment (RI) each for bomb attack on the court of the then Chittagong Metropolitan Magistrate (CMM) Akram Hossain in October 2005.

Judge Shafiqul Karim of Chittagong Divisional Speedy Trial Tribunal gave this judgement.

The four convicts are JMB Chittagong regional commander Jabed Iqbal alias Mohammad, activists of Tangail JMB branch Shahadat, Abul Malek alias Laltu and bomb expert Jahidul Islam alias Mizan alias Bomb Mizan. Of them, Mizan is absconding.

JMB chief Abdur Rahman and JMB military chief Ataur Rahman Sunny were dropped from the trial as both were executed following an earlier verdict, sources said.

JMB activists Laltu and Shahadat on October 3 in 2005 hurled a bomb at CMM Akram Hossain’s courtroom on the ground floor of Chittagong Court Building. People present there caught the two while they were fleeing and Rapid Action Battalion (Rab) later caught Jabed Iqbal.

Sources said the three gave confessional statement admitting their involvement in the bomb attack. Charges in the case were pressed on May 8, 2006, accusing six. Five witnesses gave their deposition.

Public Prosecutor Quamrul Islam Sajjad stood for the state in the trial while the militants refused to have any lawyer for them.