Funding extremism: 3 lawyers remanded again

A court in Chittagong today placed three lawyers, who were arrested over funding an Islamist outfit, on a fresh remand in Chittagong on February 21.

The court of Senior Judicial Magistrate Musaddek Minhaj placed Shakila Farzana on two-day remand while Hasanuzzaman Liton and Mahfuz Chowdhury Bapon on three-day remand each.

Rapid Action Battalion (Rab) members produced them before the court in connection with a cased filed over discovering a militant training camp in Lotmoni hilly area of Banskhali on February 21 this year.

On February 19, Rab arrested 12 militants at Al Madrasatul Abu Bakar in Hathazari and recovered laptops, memory cards and other audio-video materials used in training in classes. Gleaning information from the arrestees there, Rab discovered the militant training camp.

Earlier on August 18, Rab-7 arrested the lawyers in Dhanmondi area of Dhaka. A day after the arrest, a Chittagong court placed the arrestees on four days' remand each.

After completion of the remand, the trio gave confessional statement before a court in Chittagong yesterday.

According to the prosecution, three lawyers confessed before the court about their indirect involvement in funding Islamic extremism.

The trio deposited a total of Tk 1.08 crore in the bank account of a key member of the Shaheed Hamja Brigade. Of the money, Shakila deposited Tk 52 lakh in cash in two installments, Liton Tk 31 lakh and Bapon Tk 25 lakh, the Rab claimed.