Rab arrests yaba-peddling ‘gypsies’

Rapid Action Battalion on Tuesday conducted a drive in the capital's Basila area in Mohammadpur and arrested five youths of a drug racket with 77,000 yaba pills on Tuesday, who they said were taking an innovative disguise to peddle the contraband.

Rab-2 Commanding Officer Lt Col Imran Ullah Sarkar made the disclosure at a press briefing at the elite force's media centre in Karwan Bazar yesterday. He said the arrestees used to pose as members of the floating Bede (gypsy) community and travel from one place to another, carrying portable stoves and cooking utensils.

To avoid suspicions of people, they used to sell small items such as bangles, hair ribbons, children's belts, chains, safety pins, and rings. But behind all this, they were carrying yaba pills inside sealed-off cookers.

To dodge law enforcers, they didn't even use the highways from Cox's Bazar to Dhaka.

The arrestees are – Tarikul Islam (23), Sinbad (23), Mim Mia (22), Emon (19), and Monir (28).

The Rab official said acting on a tip-off,Rab came to know that a group of drug traffickers was coming to the Basila Bridge area of ​​Mohammadpur with a large consignment of yaba through Buriganga river.

"Law enforcement agencies have never seen such a tactic. The route they were using is also new. They didn't use the highway to bring yaba from Cox's Bazar to Dhaka," the Rab CO said, describing the drug trafficking route.

For coming from Cox's Bazar to Chattogram, they used to take village roads using various small vehicles like autorickshaws as an alternative instead of using the highway.

From Chattogram, they used to come to Dhaka in two phases, the Rab official said.

At first, they come to Feni from Chattogram's Anwara via Hathazari-Manikchhari-Guimara-Ramgarh to avoid law enforcers' check-posts at different places. Then from there, they come to Matlab Launch Ghat via Noakhali-Chaumuhani-Sonaimuri and Hajiganj of Chandpur. They would enter Dhaka via Munshiganj through the Buriganga river in engine-driven boats.

The Rab official said that this would take four to five days to come to the capital. All this time they used to live the life of Bede.

The elite force recovered cooking pots, buckets, display racks, and various imitation jewelry from the possession.