Man killed in 'crossfire' with Rab

A man was killed in a "gunfight" with Rab-1 in Narayanganj's Rupganj last afternoon (November 11, 2022), according to a top official of the force.

The man, Shaheen Miah alias City Shaheen, 35, had 23 cases against him and was wanted for murder, said Rab-1 Commanding Officer Lt Col Abdullah Al Momen.

He claimed that Shaheen was shot near Chonpara's Ward-1 around 2:00pm, when a team from the unit raided the area.

"Upon sensing the presence of Rab, Shaheen and his team opened fire on our men. They were also pelting them with brickbats. As Rab returned fire in self-defence, Shaheen collapsed while his companions fled," said Momen.

Shaheen was the gang leader, he added.

Momen also claimed that they rushed a bullet-ridden Shaheen to the Mugda Medical College Hospital in the capital where he died at 4:00pm.

However, Shaheen's brother-in-law Parvez claimed that Shaheen was picked up from Chonpara around noon and then taken to a place adjacent to Demra College and shot.

He furnished this newspaper with a video clip purportedly taken by an eyewitness.

The Daily Star could not independently verify the authenticity of the clip, which starts with the sound of an apparent gunshot.

It shows a group of men in civil clothes carrying what appears to be a motionless body. At least one of the men was seen carrying a firearm.

This newspaper spoke to the person who claimed to have taken the video but is refraining from disclosing the person's identity out of safety concern.

"I was standing in front of Demra College. I heard a gunshot and walked towards the sound and saw a boat coming ashore on the [adjacent] river. A group of people carried a man out of the boat. Then they pressed a gun against his leg and shot him. They also fired a shot in the air," said the eyewitness. "That is when I started recording the video."

The eyewitness said the incident happened at the time of Zohr azaan, and Parvez claimed the video was sent to him at 1:03pm.

Mugda Police Station Officer-in-Charge Jamaluddin Mir said Shaheen was declared dead at 4:20pm, quoting the doctors of Mugda hospital.

"I could not find a time of admission to the hospital in his documents but the doctor said he [Shaheen] arrived a while before his death," he said.

Mugda Medical College Hospital doctors sent Shaheen's body to Dhaka Medical College morgue, according to DMCH sources. They did not send over any documents attesting to his time of death or what treatment he had received when Rab supposedly took him there, said the sources.

Lt Col Momen said Shaheen was a listed criminal and that four to five Rab men were injured in the "gunfight".

"We are filing the case," he told our correspondent late last night.

He was asked about the video clip but was yet to respond when this report was filed at 2:00am today.

Deaths due to "crossfires" and "gunfights" had dwindled following the sanctions slapped on Rab's top brass by the United States.

Ain o Salish Kendra counted three deaths in "crossfires" with law enforcement agencies this year.