A young woman in Munshiganj has publicly accused police of demanding a bribe of 500,000 BDT to release her father and brother from custody, and subsequently framing them in a stolen goods case after her brother secretly recorded the extortion attempt on a mobile phone.
The allegations were brought to light on Sunday (October 27) afternoon during a crowded press briefing held at the Shafiuddin Ahmed Auditorium of the Munshiganj Press Club by Saima Aktar, daughter of the detained Md Shahjahan Sheikh. Saima demanded an impartial judicial inquiry into the incident, the immediate return of the seized bicycles, and the recovery of the confiscated mobile phones and CCTV hard drive. Law enforcement officials have vehemently denied the extortion allegations.
According to the details shared at the press conference, the ordeal began on October 19 when Saima's father purchased two rickshaws for 30,000 BDT from van driver Shahin in the Baligaon Bazar area, completing the final payment on October 22. Later that afternoon, a team of police officers reportedly raided their garage, forced open the locks, seized the two rickshaws, and assaulted Saima's brother while smashing the CCTV cameras and taking away the hard drive. That evening, police telephoned the family to retrieve the vehicles, prompting Shahjahan and his elder son Shamim Sheikh to report to the Tongibari Police Station.
Saima alleged that at the police station, Sub-Inspector (SI) Osman Ali and two other officers extorted them for 500,000 BDT, threatening to confiscate the rickshaws permanently and implicate them in a theft case if the demand went unmet. Although her father initially offered 50,000 BDT, her brother managed to secretly capture portions of the transaction on his mobile phone. Realizing they were being recorded, the enraged officers confiscated three mobile phones from the brother, detained both father and son, and later removed 42 bicycles from the garage under the guise of recovering stolen property. Saima maintained that the bicycles were part of her father's legitimate business, acquired over time for repairs, resale, and rental operations.
Further implicating the investigative team, Saima claimed that Assistant Sub-Inspector (ASI) Abdur Rahim Mollah, the investigating officer of the case, has been stalling the return of the seized phones and threatening her brother with remand, while allegedly using local Union Parishad member Kamal Hossain Khan to broker a payoff.
Responding to the allegations, UP Member Kamal Hossain Khan categorically denied any involvement in demanding money. Meanwhile, Sub-Inspector Osman Ali dismissed the accusations, telling reporters that he had no knowledge of any extortion and suggesting he was being unfairly maligned for performing his duties.
Addressing the media uproar, Munshiganj Additional Superintendent of Police Kamran Hossain stated that the case remains under active investigation. He assured that the serious grievances raised by the suspects' family are being taken into cognisance, and strict disciplinary action will be initiated against any law enforcement personnel found culpable during the inquiry.
