Mirpur police SI arrested over custodial death

A sub-inspector of the Mirpur Police Station has been arrested for his alleged involvement in the killing of a scrap dealer after taking him into custody.

Jahidur Rahman, the police officer, was arrested around 5pm on Wednesday from Rupnagar, Dhaka Metropolitan Police’s Mirpur division Deputy Commissioner Imtiaz Ahmed told bdnews24.com.

A group of policemen had detained Mahbubur Rahman Sujon, his wife Momtaz Sultana, and their five-year-old son around midnight on Saturday while raiding their house near Dhanmondi's Nizam Shankar Plaza.

Before taking them into custody, SI Jahidur Rahman and other policemen had beaten up Mahbubur, the family alleged.

Sultana said her husband was taken to a separate cell after they arrived at the Mirpur Police Station.

On Sunday morning she was told at the police station that Sujon had died.

Later, police released her and her son.

She told reporters Sujon had been tortured to death by the police.

Police officers had initially claimed that Sujon was a criminal listed by the Shah Ali Police Station.

He was supposed to help in a police drive to recover illegal arms but fell ill after being taken into custody on Saturday night, police said.

Doctors at the Shaheed Suhrawardy Medical College and Hospital declared him dead after he was taken there in the early hour of Sunday.

Meanwhile, police suspended SI Jahidur Rahman after torture the allegations surfaced.

But when the autopsy report termed Sujon’s death as murder, the policeman was arrested on Wednesday, said DC Imtiaz Ahmed.

Sujon’s brother Maqsudur Rahman alleged that Jahidur had threatened to close down his brother’s business if he failed to pay Tk 100,000 each month the SI had demanded.

Sujon was tortured to death as he did not pay the money, Maqsudur claimed.

Police have formed a committee, headed by Mirpur division Additional DC Jasim Uddin, to probe the accusations.

DC Imtiaz said Sujon’s family was notified about Jahidur’s arrest. Police would register a murder case against the SI if the family agreed to lodge one, he added.