He admitted to DMCH with severe injuries; 3 cops also hurt in ‘shootout’; Ameer’s wife, house maid also held; his son under police custody; wife admits his hand in the abduction
Muktar Hossain Ameer, the ringleader of Parag Mondol abduction case, was held Saturday morning at Tongi in Gazipur after a ‘shootout’ with DB police where he sustained severe injuries.
Ameer was admitted to Dhaka Medical College Hospital following the ‘gunfight’.
Detectives also arrested Ameer’s wife Beauty and their housemaid Rumi, 13, from the spot.
Beauty admitted that her husband was involved in the abduction of Parag, DB high officials said during a press briefing at its head office in the capital.
Police also kept Ameer’s two-and-a-half-year-old boy under their custody.
Sanwar Hossain, senior assistant commissioner of Detective Branch (DB) of police, who led the team in the drive claimed that three police personnel also sustained injuries during the ‘shootout’.
In the wee hours of Saturday, Detective Branch of police however claimed that Ameer was killed in a ‘shootout’ with DB police in Tongi.
Meanwhile, Monirul Islam, deputy commissioner of DB (south), and Habibur Rahman, superintendent of police of Dhaka district, during a joint press briefing in the afternoon claimed that no ransom were paid for releasing Parag.
Armed criminals abducted six-year-old Parag, shooting his mother, sister and their driver near their house in Shubhadda Paschimpara in Keraniganj while they were about to board their car for going to school on November 11 morning.
The class-I student was freed after three days after reportedly on payment of a ransom of Tk 50 lakh.
Police and Parag’s family however denied paying the ransom repeatedly.
Quoting Rajbari police the media earlier reported that Ameer was arrested at Manikganj district on Tuesday night.
It all started around 3:45am Saturday when a team of DB police led by Sanwar raided a house in Tilargati-Singbari area of Tongi in Gazipur and an incident of ‘shootout’ occurred between them and Ameer, said Saidur Rahman, an inspector of DB police.
The DB had information that Ameer was hiding at the house and they repeatedly knocked at its door.
As nobody opened the door, they tried to break open the door, the inspector said.
But Ameer, sensing the presence of law enforcers, opened fires on them, forcing them to retaliate, he added.
Later, police recovered Ameer lying on a pool of blood in the room and considered him dead as two bullets hit at his chest and head, Saidur added.
Later, they sent the body to Tongi Upazila Health Complex.
At one stage, Ameer who remained motionless for nearly three hours regained consciousness around 7:00am and started to groan at the health complex, a Tongi police official said.
They rushed him to DMCH. Ameer is now undergoing treatment there, the police official said.
Ameer’s wife, their son and housemaid surprisingly remain unhurt during the ‘shootout’.
Police also recovered two pistols and 85 bullets from the spot.
During the DB briefing, the law enforcers also denied the media claim that the ransom was paid for releasing Parag.
If Parag was kidnapped for ransom, the aim of the abductors were not fulfilled as pressure was created on them (abductors) detaining their relatives for releasing the school boy, the DB high-ups said.
On queries why they at first declared Ameer dead, Masudur Rahman, media and public relation in-charge of Dhaka Metropolitan Police said, after the ‘shootout’ they considered Ameer dead as he remained motionless for nearly three hours.
When they sent the body to the health complex, the duty doctor found him alive. Later, they sent Ameer to DMCH.
The injured policemen are: a DB inspector Mezbah Uddin Ahmed, and two DB Sub-inspectors — Azizul Haque and SI Mohammad Monirul Haque.
Source: The Daily Star
