A Rangpur court yesterday framed charges against eight members of outlawed Jama'atul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) in connection

with the killing of Kunio Hoshi, a Japanese national, in Kaunia upazila on October 3 last year.

The court has also issued an arrest warrant for four JMB men.

On July 3, Abdul Kader Zilani, officer-in-charge of Kaunia police and also investigation officer in the case, pressed charges against the eight JMB men.

Four of the JMB men have been arrested and are now in Rangpur jail, while the rest are at large.

The Court of Senior Judicial Magistrate Arifur Rahman framed charges against the accused. Among them, Masud Rana, 33, JMB military commander of Rangpur region, Khoybar Hossain, 32, Ishhat Ali, 34, and Abu Sayeed, 28, who hailed from Pirgachha upazila, were present before the court.

Masud Rana and Ishhat Ali confessed to being involved in the killing before a court in December last year, according to police.

The Rangpur court yesterday also

issued an arrest warrant against the fugitives -- Saddam Hossain, Shakhawat Hossain, and Hasan Al Ansari. They were from Kurigram, Gaibandha and Panchagarh districts.

The court also dropped the names of four suspects - Rashedunnabi Khan Biplop, a leader of Rangpur city BNP, Md Hira, a business partner of the Japanese National, Jubo Dal leader Kalo Rubel alias Bhorsa Kazal and Merit Sumon as police could not find evidence of their involvement.

The police had arrested them soon after the killing and took them into remand several times but could not get any vital information.