FROM PAGE 16

Karwan Bazar, Wing Commander MZM Entekhab Chowdhury, director of Rab’s Legal and Media Wing, said all five arrestees -- Md Sohag, Ismail Hossain Jony, Imran Hossain Hridoy, Rahat Hossain Jewel and Sujon -- are active members of an organised mugging gang.

They were arrested in separate drives in Cumilla.

Four of the arrestees gave confessional statements before a Cumilla court yesterday, while another accused was placed on a three-day remand, said Investigation Officer Titu Kumar Nath of Cumilla Sadar South Police Station.

Senior Judicial Magistrate Abida Sultana Moli recorded the statements of four accused -- Hridoy, Sohag, Sujon and Jewel -- and granted a three-day remand for Jony.

Rab said Bullet was returning to Cumilla from Chattogram after a training programme.

At around 8:45am on April 25, Moynamati Highway Police recovered his body beside a hotel in the Kotbari area on the Dhaka-Chattogram highway. Multiple injury marks were found on the body.

Rab said it launched an investigation immediately after the body was recovered and intensified surveillance, leading to the arrests.

During preliminary interrogation, the suspects said they belonged to an organised gang that mainly targeted long-distance passengers. They would lure travellers into CNG-run auto-rickshaws and later rob them at knifepoint.

Rab also said the vehicle used in the killing belonged to the gang, and the driver, along with three others inside, were habitual criminals.

The Rab official said Bullet, who was travelling by bus, did not get off at his scheduled stoppage at Paduar Bazar on the Dhaka-Chattogram highway. Instead, he travelled about 5.8 kilometres further to Jhagurjhuli. Investigators believe he may have fallen asleep on the bus.

He fell victim to the gang when he took a CNG-run auto-rickshaw to return from Jhagurjhuli towards Paduar Bazar, also known as Jangalia Bus Stand.

During the drives, Rab recovered and seized weapons and vehicles allegedly used in the crime, including a CNG-run auto-rickshaw, a machete, a hammer and other items.

Rab also said the suspects have multiple cases filed against them at different police stations on various charges, including theft, robbery and drug-related offences.

Bullet Bairagi served as an assistant revenue officer at the Customs, Excise and VAT Commissionerate in Cumilla’s Bibir Bazar Land Port.

The day his body was recovered, his mother Nilima Bairagi filed a murder case with Cumilla Sadar South Model Police Station against unidentified individuals.

Yesterday marked the first birthday of Bullet’s only son, Avyay Bairagi. The day, however, was overshadowed by grief following the killing.

On Sunday morning, after legal formalities, the body was taken to his village home in Tungipara, Gopalganj, where he was buried following funeral rites.

Before that, colleagues paid their last respects at his workplace. The atmosphere at the customs office was heavy with grief as coworkers bid farewell with flowers.

Bullet’s mother alleged that it was a planned murder and demanded exemplary punishment for those responsible.

Cumilla Customs, Excise and VAT Commissioner Abdul Mannan Sardar said Bullet had joined the 44th basic training programme in Chattogram on April 11.

After completing the training, he left for Cumilla by bus from Alankar intersection at around 11:00pm on April 24.

He remained in regular contact with his family during the journey. His last call came at 2:25am, when he informed them that he had reached the Tomsom Bridge intersection in Cumilla city.