Fake liquor-making gang busted

Chattogram police yesterday busted an organised gang that manufactures adulterated liquor and sold them using fake labels of foreign brands, arresting five people from different parts of port city in possession with liquor-making materials. 

Law enforcers claimed that three persons who died in the city’s Kaiballadham area of Akbar Shah on August 15  -- fell sick after drinking toxic alcohol made by the gang.

The arrestees are Nasim Uddin, 23, Ekramul Haque, 23, Swapan Pal, 51, Imran Faisal, 21, and Jahedur Rahman Arju, 30.

Among the arrestees, Ekramul and Swapan used to run homeopathy pharmacies, and supplied spirit to the gang from their shops, while Nasim used to deliver the adulterated liquor to different areas on his motorbike, said Deputy Commissioner  (West) Faruk-Ul-Haque of Chattogram Metropolitan Police (CMP).

Imran is the maker of adulterated liquor using the spirit, chemicals and flavours, he added.

Addressing a press conference at CMP Headquarters in Dampara, DC Faruk said four persons including the three who died on August 15 brought a bottle of liquor from Nasim and later consumed it at the house of one Biswajit Mallik.

“The gang first collected empty bottles of foreign-brand alcohol from different bars and liquor shops in the city, and then refilled the bottles with the mixture of spirit and different chemicals to look like the original product, and put fresh labels on the bottle printed from the press,” said the DC.

Officer-in-Charge (OC) Mostafizur Rahman of Akbar Shah Police Station said police started an investigation about the source of liquor after the death of three people in Akbar Shah, and found a clue about Nasim and arrested him from the same area on August 20.

Later, based on his confession, police arrested Ekram and Swapan from Hazari Lane area while Imran and Jahed were detained from Andarkilla, said OC Mustafiz.

“The labels of different liquor brands were printed from the presses in Andarkilla and Pahartali areas,” said OC Mustafiz.

Police official Mustafiz said the gang used to spent Tk 200-300 for each bottle and they usually sold every bottle for about Tk 1,500 to Tk 4,000.

DC Faruk said during primary interrogation, Nasim said the gang has been involved in the business for four years.

OC Mustafiz said the gang destroyed the consignment of the liquor batch, after the death of the three.