Crime rate shot up

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Killings by professional killers and muggers marked a sharp rise over the last week in the capital with 14 such incidents recorded with different police stations.

Out of the 14, nine were killed within a span of only two days — on last Thursday and Friday. Three of the victims were killed during muggings.

According police records, the total number of killings that took place in the city last month was 25 while the figure was 24 in March.

The recent rise in killings has prompted Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) to launch a special month-long drive throughout the metropolis.

“We have started a massive operation from Friday to arrest professional killers, muggers, persons in possession of illegal arms and other criminals,” said DMP Commissioner Naim Ahmed while speaking with The Daily Star yesterday.

The DMP commissioner claimed that despite the rise in killings, which are sporadic incidents and mostly vendetta killings by business rivals or by muggers, the law and order situation is still under control.

Since the launching of the special drive on Friday till yesterday morning, the police arrested 20 criminal suspects and seized two firearms, eight bullets and a few other lethal weapons from the possession of some of the arrestees.

Two of the arrestees are suspects in the Wari gunfire incident on Friday when a youth, Ashiqur Rahman Khan, was shot to death and his two brothers injured in the firing. Police yesterday morning also arrested Iftekhar Beg Jhalak — the suspected mastermind of the incident.

Police suspect that Jhalak had hired hitmen to kill Ashiq and his two brothers over a house rental feud. Jhalak was arrested before on November 6, 1998 with eight firearms in his possession in the Bashubazar Lane area at Sutrapur and trial of the arms case is still going on, said the police.

Sources said Ashiq’s family members had the two injured brothers — Atiqur Rahman Khan and Arifur Rahman Khan — transferred to private clinics from Dhaka Medical College Hospital yesterday in a critical state.

Meanwhile, Khilgaon police launched an investigation into the killings of three alleged robbers by a mob at Trimohoni on Friday as the family members of the victims claimed that the killings were committed out of business rivalry.

The police however said several criminal cases had been filed with different police stations against two of the victims — Rafiqul Islam and Russell. The name of the third victim is Liakat Hossain.

Abu Jahid, officer in charge of Khilgaon Police Station, yesterday said the police have arrested another alleged robber, Salahuddin, who was injured during the mob beating. Salahuddin is now undergoing treatment at Orthopaedics Hospital in the city.

In a separate drive on Friday evening at Kalyanpur in the city, Mirpur police arrested two people — Rahman and Shahjamal, for demanding toll from a housewife. One of the criminals posed as dreaded criminal Shahadat. Police seized three toy guns, a machete and a list of affluent individuals from their possession.

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