Rab arrests 4 'JMB men'

Rapid Action Battalion yesterday claimed to have arrested four suspected members of banned militant outfit Jama'atul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) from Dohar on the outskirts of the capital.

The arrestees, who belong to JMB's “Sarwar-Tamim group”, were planning to carry out subversive activities around the country. They were waiting for instructions from a “big brother”, said Jahangir Hossain Matubbar, Rab-10 commanding officer, at a press briefing at the force's media centre in the capital's Karwan Bazar. 

He, however, did not name the “big brother".

Of the detainees, Faisal Ahmed Sanil, 19, a student of Ispahani Degree College, left his Keraniganj home on Sunday to join a so-called jihad, the Rab official said.

The other arrestees are Misbah, 19, a student of Sonahazra Madrasa, his younger brother Mahfuz, 16, who sat for this year's SSC examinations, and Taibur Rahman, 18. They are from Dohar upazila.

The three were arrested and a sharp weapon was seized from their possession based on information from five militant suspects arrested on March 20. On information gleaned from Misbah, Rab later arrested Faisal in Dohar. 

The Rab official said Misbah had contact with Tamim Ahmed Chowdhury, the alleged Gulshan café attack mastermind, who was killed in a police raid in Narayanganj last year. 

All the arrestees have been involved in militancy for about one and a half years. They know how to use internet and mobile apps specialising in encrypted messages such as Threema and Telegram. They used to spread their ideology via Facebook and other social media, Rab said.  

The Rab-10 CO claimed that Faisal's mother knew about her son's involvement in militancy. However, talking to The Daily Star, Faisal's mother Fahmida Akter claimed her son was innocent.

"Faisal has been practising religion since childhood, but I did not see anything suspicious … He might be a victim of conspiracy,” she said, adding, "I am happy to know that my son is still alive.”

"At around 12:15pm on Sunday, my son along with his three friends left our home with trousers and a towel, saying that they will swim in the Dhaleshwari river. Before going to the river, he told me to cook what he wanted to eat after his return,” Fahmida said yesterday. 

From the river, they went to Rohitpur Bazar near their village in an auto-rickshaw. Faisal's friends returned home, but Faisal went missing since then, she said, quoting the three friends. 

The next day, Fahmida filed a general diary with Keraniganj Police Station.

During yesterday's briefing, Rab official Jahangir said Misbah gave them some IDs of different apps which were used by Tamim. 

"He told us that he had communicated with Tamim several times and gone to Dhaka once to meet him, but he could not do that as he [Tamim] was busy with organisational activities,” he said.

THE ARRESTEES 

According to Rab, Misbah, alongside studying at a madrasa, used to work as a technician in a mobile servicing shop. Motivated by a so-called “big brother”, he joined the militant group in 2015. Working under cover of a technician, he used to make improvised explosive devices, Rab claimed.

Mahfuz was inspired into joining the outfit by his brother Misbah. Mahfuz took arms training and made explosives and supplied those to their accomplices. 

Misbah also inspired Faisal into joining the outfit in 2016. Faisal received arms training in mid-2016 in Chittagong.

Taibur joined JMB around one and a half years ago, Rab said.

Fathers of all four arrestees are now in Saudi Arabia.