Ex-Rab officer Rana on 7-day remand
Ex-Rab officer Rana on 7-day remand
A day after putting two former Rab officers on a five-day remand, a Narayanganj court today remanded a third officer, Lt Commander (retd) SM Masud Rana, for seven days for his alleged link with the seven-murder in Narayanganj.
Senior Judicial Magistrate KM Mahiuddin granted the remand after police produced him before the judge seeking a 10-day remand for him, report our correspondents at the court.
At the hearing, Rana claimed himself innocent and said the murder spot was not his duty area.
He was taken to the court hours after his arrest from the capital's cantonment area in the early hours of today.
A team of Narayanganj police picked up Rana a day into the arrest of two former Rab officers Lt Col Tareque Sayeed Mohammad and Major Arif Hossain from the Cantonment area.
The three Rapid Action Battalion (Rab) officials, who were sent on retirement, were arrested for their alleged involvement in the abduction and killing of seven people including Narayanganj panel mayor Nazrul Islam and senior lawyer Chandan Sarker.
The arrest follows a May 11 High Court order.
Lt Col Tareque, who was commanding officer of Rab-11 when the crime took place in Narayanganj, and Maj Arif were placed on a five-day remand, 10 hours after their arrest yesterday.
Tareque is also son-in-law of Disaster Management and Relief Minister Mofazzal Hossain Chowdhury Maya.
On May 6, the three officials were forced into retirement over the allegation of involvement in the killings of seven people.
Their names cropped up when Nazrul's father-in-law Shahidul Islam alleged that some officials of Rab-11 had killed Nazrul in exchange for Tk 6 crore from councillor Nur Hossain and his accomplices.
None of the three arrestees has been made accused in the murder case filed by Nazrul's wife.
Tareque and Arif were arrested under section 54 of the Code of Criminal Procedure.
On April 27, Narayanganj panel mayor Nazrul Islam, his four aides and senior lawyer Chandan Sarker and his driver were kidnapped near Khan Shaheb Osman Ali Stadium in Fatullah around the same.
Six bodies, including that of Nazrul and Chandan, were found floating in the Shitalakkhya river on April 30, and another was found the following day. The other victims are Swapan, Tajul Islam, Liton, Jahangir and Ibrahim.