Two killed as highway robbery turns violent in Gazipur

One of the robbers died after an autorickshaw hit him, and the gang then attacked the driver

At least two people have been killed a robbery turned violent in Gazipur’s Sreepur Upazila, police say.

At least four people have been arrested over the incident that occurred around 3am on Friday at Satkhamair Bazar Mazar area on the Mawna-Bormi Regional Highway, said Sreepur Police Station chief Mohammad Abdul Barik.

Police say the dead are 22-year-old robbery gang member Md Arif Hossain from Cumilla and 40-year-old autorickshaw driver Abul Kalam from Sreepur.

The arrestees are also members of the robber gang. However, they have yet to be identified.

Pick-up truck driver Md Shafiqul Islam, a witness to the incident, said he was heading towards Bormi from MC Bazar in Sreepur. A gang of six to seven robbers then blocked his vehicle by placing trees on the road in the Mazar area near Satkhamair Bazar. They took away his mobile phone and money.

Other vehicles were being looted along the road at the same time, he said. One of the robbers was injured when a speeding autorickshaw hit them. Out of anger, the robbers then hacked the autorickshaw driver, injuring him severely.

At one point, the robbery victims began to scream for help and locals rushed forward to protect them. The villagers beat the injured robber severely.

OC Barik said a patrol team of police reached the scene when the incident was reported. They arrested four members of the gang with the help of the locals.

He said injured the robber Arif and autorickshaw driver Kalam were taken to the Sreepur Upazila Health Complex. The doctor at the health complex declared Arif dead. Kalam died while being transferred to Dhaka.

Legal action is being taken over the incident, the police officer said.