Ballistic test confirms gun used to hijack Biman plane was a toy pistol

The gun recovered from the Biman Bangladesh Airlines plane hijack suspect was a locally made toy pistol, ballistic tests have confirmed.

Police on Wednesday released findings of the report of the test conducted by the Criminal Investigation Department or CID.

CID submitted the report to Chattogram Metropolitan Police’s Counterterrorism and Transnational Crimes unit on Mar 7.

“It appears to be original, but it’s a toy pistol. It’s magazine can be separated and small plastic balls can be used as bullets. It can also make a little sound. But it’s totally a toy,” Rumana Akter, a special superintendent of police at CID’s forensic department, told bdnews24.com.

CTTC Inspector Rajesh Barua, who is investigating the case over the Feb 24 incident, said they received the report on Tuesday.

“It says there is no scope of using gunpowder or firing shots in the toy pistol,” he said.

“Gun Series Osaka, Aman Industries, Made in Bangladesh,” reads a label on the toy.

Two of the passengers of the Flight BG147 told the media that the suspect fired two shots after wielding a pistol at the passengers onboard the plane after it took off from Dhaka.   

All the passengers, the pilot and crew members disembarked safely after the Dubai-bound Boeing 737 landed in Chattogram’s Shah Amanat International Airport, its stopover.

Army commandos then stormed the plane to free it from the suspect, Polash Ahmed. He died after being fatally shot in the operation.

Police later said the pistol was a toy. The army said the commandos shot the suspect as they did not want to take any chances when he became aggressive.