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Published : 29 Sep 2025, 10:58 PM
An armed gang has halted construction at a building site in Chattogram’s Bayazid after firing blank shots in public and assaulting workers over an “extortion demand”.
The incident took place on Saturday morning at Uttara Housing Society under Bayazid Bostami Police Station, prompting one of the landowners to initiate a case with police.
The gang claimed affiliation with Emon, a follower of Sajjad Hossain alias “Chhoto Sajjad”, who was arrested in Dhaka a few months ago
Landowner Zahirul Islam said the group had previously threatened workers about two weeks earlier by firing blank shots and ordering them to leave.
Later, a caller introducing himself as Emon contacted him through WhatsApp, asking that construction materials be purchased from their sources. When told the materials had already been procured, the caller “demanded” Tk 1.5 million.
“On Saturday morning, a group of armed men fired blank shots and beat up the workers. At night, they again threatened the workers to leave the site. The workers have fled in fear, and construction has remained suspended for two days,” he added.
CCTV footage from the site reportedly shows 10 to 12 men speaking in the Chattogram dialect, abusing workers and ordering them to leave.
One masked attacker, dressed in black with a cap, was seen raising a pistol and firing into the air.
During the assault, one of the gang members is heard saying in the local dialect: “You better talk to Sajjad Bhai and Emon Bhai.”
The same footage shows some attackers carrying containers of liquid, apparently attempting to cause damage, while most of the men were wearing masks.
In his case statement, Zahirul said last year he and 23 others bought 0.04 hectares of land on plot No. 3 of Uttara Housing in the Oxygen-Kuwaish Road area. Construction began on Sept 5.
After work started, two men, identified with single names Sohel and Hasan, reportedly called the site engineer to issue threats and demand that the landowners make contact with them. When no contact was made, five men allegedly intimidated workers and halted construction about 10–12 days ago.
On Saturday, the gang returned, vandalising workers’ accommodations, taking mobile phones, and damaging storage rooms and piling equipment, the statement said.
Bayazid Bostami Police chief Md Kamruzzaman said CCTV footage had been collected, adding that the assailants had worn masks and efforts were under way to identify them.
Sajjad has a long history of violence in Chattogram. Two decades ago he was accused in a case over the killing of eight people near Shah Amanat Bridge, after a bus was used to block a microbus carrying Bangladesh Chhatra League activists.
His network has since engaged in extortion in Bayazid and Chandgaon, with Emon now believed to lead operations on his behalf.
