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Published : 17 Aug 2023, 09:11 PM
A Dhaka court has sentenced former newspaper editors Shafik Rehman, Mahmudur Rahman and three others to seven years in jail over a plot to abduct and kill Sajeeb Wazed Joy, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s son.
The other convicts are Mohammad Ullah Mamun, vice-president of Jatiyatabadi Samajik Sangskritik Sangstha, a pro-BNP organisation, his son Rizve Ahmed Caesar, and Mizanur Rahman Bhuiyan, a businessman living in the United States.
Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Asaduzzaman Noor handed down the verdict on two counts of charges on Thursday.
Additional Public Prosecutor Md Abdur Rahman Khan said the five convicts got five years in jail and Tk 5,000 fines for plotting to abduct Joy.
They will have to serve another month in jail if they do not pay the fines.
They were sentenced to two more years in jail for criminal conspiracy to commit an offence. If they do not pay Tk 5,000 fines for this charge, they will be in jail for another month.
The judge ruled that the sentences are concurrent, or they will serve the sentences at the same time, meaning the total jail term will be of five years.
As all the convicts are on the run, the judge issued arrest warrants for them.
RIZVE BRIBED FBI AGENT FOR JOY’S LOCATION
A New York court handed a three-year jail term to Rizve in 2015 after finding him guilty of bribing an FBI official to obtain classified information.
An FBI agent linked to Rizve was also sentenced to five years in jail.
As per the court document, Rizve handed the information to a Bangladeshi journalist in return for $30,000.
The matter had triggered discussions in Bangladesh parliament.
Joy, who lives in the US with his family, accused BNP leaders of conspiring to “abduct and kill him” in a Facebook post in March that year.
Bangladesh Police started the case at Paltan Police Station in August 2015 over the “plot to abduct Joy”.
According to the charges pressed against the accused in 2018, BNP loyalist Mamun, and other top leaders of the party and its allies gathered at their office in Dhaka’s Naya Paltan, New York, and the UK at some point before September 2011 to chalk out a plan to murder Joy after abducting him.
Rizve collected personal details of Joy, especially his location, from the FBI and provided it to the other suspects, according to the chargesheet.
SHAFIK, MAHMUDUR GOT JOY’S INFO FROM RIZVE
Shafik Rehman is the former editor of the Jai Jai Din while Mahmudur Rahman was acting editor of Bangla-language newspaper Amar Desh – both known for their affiliation with the BNP.
After his arrest in April 2016, Shafik was quizzed on remand two times.
Police said they found confidential information on Joy at Shafik’s home in Dhaka.
Shafik’s wife Taleya Rehman claimed he sought the information on Joy for an investigative report.
Shafik was freed on bail five months later. He then travelled to the UK.
Mahmudur, a former advisor to BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia, was arrested in 2013 in a case over alleged treason. He was shown arrested in the case over the plot to abduct Joy in 2016.
Police said Mahmudur received information, including location, on Joy and his family from Rizve via Mizanur.
Mahmudur went to London after securing bail in November 2016.
WHAT JOY SAID
Joy, who is also the ICT affairs advisor to the prime minister, testified in the case in November 2022.
Citing Joy’s testimony, his lawyer said the US Department of Justice contacted the prime minister’s son and informed him that two FBI officials wanted to talk to him about a matter.
When Joy met the FBI agents, they asked if he knew Rizve, Mahmudullah, Shafik or Mahmudur.
Joy said he did not know Rizve or Mahmudullah but heard the names of the newspaper editors.
The FBI then revealed that it had detained one of its officials on charges of taking $40,000 from Rizve and others and striking a deal with them to provide personal details of Joy, especially his location, in exchange for $30,000 a month.
The FBI later arrested Rizve and learned that they had sought information to abduct and kill Joy, according to Joy’ testimony.
Joy later testified in a US court and learnt that Rizve was punished.
The prime minister’s son said the FBI advised him to be cautious and install CCTV cameras at his home. He later moved home for safety.
In his deposition, Joy demanded justice from the court.
