Chittagong cops confess to robbery
An assistant commissioner of Chittagong Metropolitan Police (CMP) and his two subordinates, who are on a two-day police remand for robbery, confessed to the crime yesterday.
Assistant Commissioner Abu Saleh Mohammad Mofazzal Haque of CMP Panchlaish Zone, his bodyguard constable Ehsanul Islam and driver constable Abdur Rauf were arrested on Monday on charge of robbery at a businessman's house in the city's Amirbar area early Sunday.
Sources said a five-member team headed by Deputy Police Commissioner (headquarters) Manzur Morshed Khan interrogated the accused at Kotwali Police Station Monday night.
Mofazzal admitted during the grilling that two sources gave him information about robbing businessman Faruq Ahmed Chowdhury's residence.
He said his driver also spied on the house twice early in the day.
The interrogation team will further quiz the disgraced cops before the two-day remand expires this afternoon, sources said.
CMP Commissioner M Akbar Ali said there was not much to interrogate since the accused have already confessed everything, adding that their confessional statements were enough to earn them exemplary punishment.
He said the two sources would also be charged with the crime.
Meantime, more extortion and mugging charges surfaced against the trio.
A timber merchant in Ek Kilometer area in the city complained to the police commissioner yesterday that the three cops forced him into paying Tk 88,700 last month.
"On my way home from a grocer's at about 11:00pm on January 14, I saw the three men pulling up in front of my warehouse, looking for me. As I asked them about the reason, the driver pulled me by the collar and took me to the car", Md Salamatullah, the timber merchant, told this correspondent.
"The AC then accused me of possessing illegal timber and demanded Tk 1 lakh from me. As I denied the charge and refused to pay him, he punched me in the face and started beating me. I still bear the bruises in my legs," he said, adding that they let him go only after he managed to give them Tk 88,700 that night.
"One of the guys from whom I borrowed the money phoned me this morning (Wednesday) and drew my attention to the newspaper report. I instantly recognised them and made no delay to rush to the commissioner's office to lodge my complaint," Salamat said.
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