Police have arrested two people, including Demra police station Chhatra Dal convener Mohammad Masud Rana, also known as ‘Kailla Masud’, in connection with an incident in which shots were fired at the residence of an opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) leader in the capital.
Masud Rana, 35, and Tapas, 38, were detained during separate raids following the shooting at the home of SM Reza Chowdhury Selim, convener of the Demra police station BNP unit.
According to police, Tapas was arrested at around 2.30am on Monday, 31 August, near the approach to Demra Bridge. Police identified him as a convicted accused in the Rubel murder case. Following information obtained after his arrest, officers later conducted an operation in the Barabo area of Tarabo municipality in Rupganj, Narayanganj, where Masud Rana was arrested from a house belonging to a man identified as Jalil.
Mallik Ahsan Chhami, deputy commissioner of the Wari division, confirmed the arrests on Tuesday afternoon.
Police said a significant quantity of firearms and ammunition was recovered during the operations. The items allegedly seized include two pistols, two magazines, five rounds of pistol ammunition, one single-barrel shotgun and eight shotgun cartridges.
Demra police station officer-in-charge Mirza Taifur Rahman said Masud Rana was arrested from Rupganj with firearms. He added that, following instructions from senior officials, a case was likely to be filed with Rupganj police station over the recovery.
According to the officer, investigators used information technology to trace the two suspects. During the operation at Jalil’s house in Barabo, police reportedly found an old single-barrel shotgun and eight cartridges on a wooden platform inside an abandoned room. Officers subsequently searched Tapas’s rented accommodation in the same area, where they allegedly recovered the two pistols, two magazines and five rounds of ammunition.
Police have also made allegations about the activities of the two men in the Demra area. Investigators claim that, after 5 August, Tapas had allegedly been involved in criminal activities while using the BNP’s name through Masud Rana. Police also alleged that the pair had been involved in running a drug trade in Demra, allegedly using firearms to exert influence in the area.
Masud Rana is the foster son of the late Shahjahan Mia of the Boxnagar area in Demra. Tapas is the son of the late Golam Mostafa of the Borobhanga Mahakash Road area. Police said Tapas had already been convicted in the Rubel murder case.
The arrests came days after an armed attack at Selim’s residence. In the early hours of 28 August, a group of people allegedly arrived in front of the BNP leader’s house on four motorcycles and fired three rounds. The shooting damaged the glass of a second-floor window.
Police recovered two spent pistol cartridges and one shotgun cartridge from the scene after the incident. The evidence prompted an investigation aimed at identifying those involved in the shooting and determining the circumstances surrounding the attack.
Investigators are now examining whether the firearms and ammunition recovered from the two arrested men are connected to the shooting at Selim’s residence. Police have not yet established such a link.
The case also remains under investigation to determine the alleged roles of the arrested individuals, the source and intended use of the recovered firearms, and whether others were involved in the incident. Any further legal action will depend on the findings of the investigation and the evidence collected by police.
