‘Piracy’ in the guise of fishing: eight arrested in Chattogram

The alleged robbers intimidate fishing boat crew with rocket flares before robbing them of fish and valuables

River police have arrested eight men in Chattogram on charges of looting trawlers in the Bay of Bengal under false pretences of fishing.

They were detained on Saturday night following an operation on two trawlers anchored at the Old Fishery Ghat area.

The detainees are Hari Chandra Das, 40, Asif Uddin alias Tamim, 22, Fahad Ahmed, 20, Tapas Dhar, 25, Parimal Saha, 48, Md Nabi, 28, Md Rajib, 25, and Md Hridoy, 20.

Hari, a trawler owner, is accused of leading the gang. Police claim the other gang members fled when they sensed police presence.

Assistant Superintendent of Police Sayeed Ibne Reza told bdnews24.com the group carried out robberies on fishing trawlers, looting fish and other valuables.

They were preparing for another attack on Saturday when the police intercepted them.

Sharp weapons, rocket flares and other equipment were seized from the trawlers.

According to police, the gang carried out at least two trawler robberies in the past month.

Their targets included fishing boats in the Bay of Bengal’s Hatiya, Sandwip and Kumira channels, as well as trawlers in the Karnaphuli River.

Police said the robbers would approach trawlers, fire rocket flares to intimidate crew, then board with sharp weapons to loot fish and other goods.

Hari Chandra was later apprehended at a hotel in Sadarghat based on information from the detainees, said Sayeed.

A case has been filed at Kotwali Police Station over the incident.