Rab man handed over to police for demanding toll in Chittagong

Mir Momtaz Hossain alias Mintu, 38, a resident of Ashkerdighirparr, handed over Rab member Mohammad Ishaq to Kotwali Police Station.

Mintu alleged that Ishaq went to his residence to investigate some complaints and demanded toll from him to settle the matter.

Rab-7 officials in Chittagong took Ishaq from police custody to their headquarters at Patenga for quizzing.

Rab sources said the accused has already been relieved of his post as deputy assistant director, and process is underway to take departmental action against him if the allegation is proved true.

Ishaq, who was a petty officer of Bangladesh Navy before joining the Rab, claimed that he was a victim of blackmailing.

Sources said a dispute over property had recently prompted Mintu's sisters to file a series of complaints with the Rab against him.

In their complaints, the sisters also identified Mintu as an accused in several criminal cases filed with different police stations in the city.

Being assigned to investigate into the matter, Ishaq along with another Rab member in uniform went to Mintu's residence on Thursday.

"But Ishaq again went to my house yesterday at around 10:15am, this time alone in plain clothes, and demanded Tk 5000 in toll," alleged Mintu and his mother Sabera Begum.

Rab sources confirmed that Ishaq was assigned to investigate the complaints against Mintu but he was not supposed to go there alone in plain clothes yesterday.

A Rab press release said Mintu's sisters Akter Shirin, Nilufa Sultana, Kajal Sultana, Parveen Fatema and Baby Mostafa, in their written complaints identified him as an accused in 12 criminal cases and described him as a terrorist.

Mintu availed of the situation to get Ishaq trapped, the press release claimed.

Mintu along with his wife and mother was being interrogated at Rab-7 headquarters, it added.