Rab man jailed for bribery
Court Correspondent
A Dhaka court yesterday sentenced a Rapid Action Battalion (Rab) member to five years' rigorous imprisonment (RI) for attempting to take Tk 1 lakh in bribe from a businessman at Gopibagh in the capital on March 8. Metropolitan Magistrate MA Salam of the Speedy Trial Court-3 handed down the sentence in presence of the convict Sub-Inspector (SI) Hafizur Rahman of Rab-3. The court also fined him Tk 10,000, in default he has to suffer RI for six months more. Soon after the verdict, Hafiz was sent to the Dhaka Central Jail under tight security. He tried to hide himself when photojournalists were taking picture of him. Earlier, the prosecution and the defence completed their arguments and the court recorded statements of 15 prosecution witnesses. According to the prosecution, the intelligence wing of the Rab arrested SI Hafiz at Gopibagh in the city while receiving Tk 1 lakh in bribe on March 8 this year. It is alleged that a 10-member Rab-3 team arrested Nasir Uddin, owner of the Bhai Bhai Rice Store in Gopibagh, at his house in Swamibagh in the city on the night of February 23 and took him to the Rab-3 office. SI Hafiz of the team beat up Nasir severely with two cane sticks until he became unconscious. "One Shahadat Ullah Tipu urged me to collect the money you owe him," the SI said to him adding, "people are brought here to kill." Later, Hafiz released Nasir and asked him to bring Tk 1 lakh at his rice store at Gopibagh Rail Crossing on March 8. Nasir then informed the intelligence wing of the Rab about the incident. According to a plan, he went to his store on that day with the money in two bundles of Tk 50,000 each along with the intelligence men. The Rab intelligence nabbed SI Hafiz while he was taking the money from Nasir. The same day Nasir filed a case against the SI with Demra Police Station under Speedy Trial (Law and Order Disruption) Act. Investigation Officer (IO) Jahangir Hossain pressed charge against the SI on March 15, showing 20 people as prosecution witnesses. In another case, Metropolitan Magistrate Mir Ali Reza of the Speedy Trial Court-6 acquitted a constable of the charge of extortion. The court acquitted Mohammad Shajahan of Rajarbagh Police Lines as the charge brought against him was not proved. The constable was arrested for his alleged attempt to extort money from a businessman at Bangabandhu National Stadium on August 22.
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