RAB arrests five suspected members of illegal kidney trade ring that dupes poor donors

The Rapid Action Battalion has arrested five people on charges of swindling poor kidney donors out of millions of takas in illegal organ trade.

They took up to Tk 2.5 million from every patient but gave the donors Tk 200,000 each, the RAB said at a press conference on Wednesday after busting the ring.

The suspects have been named as Md Shahidul Islam Mithu, 49, Md Mizaur Rahman, 44, Md Al Mamun alias Mehedy, 27, Md Saimon, 28, and Md Rasel Hossain, 24. They were arrested in Dhaka’s Bhatara, Banasree and Mirpur on Tuesday night.

Citing information given by them in initial interrogation, RAB-1 commander Abdul Momen said they are members of a group of 20 that targeted the poor victims from remote areas through social media.

They also trafficked more than 100 people to India in coordination with similar rings on the other side of the border, Momen said.

Mithu, who had gone to India in 2016 for his treatment, is the leader of the gang, according to the RAB. He planned the trade after seeing a huge demand for kidneys among wealthy patients.

Mithu admitted to trading in more than 50 kidneys, said Momen. Mizanur used to prepare papers, sometimes fake ones, for the donors to travel to India, where another ring of Indian organ traders would receive the victims for the transplant.

The RAB seized contracts on organ donation, 14 passports, papers on kidney crossmatching, foreign currencies, NIDs and fake seals during the arrests.

The RAB’s cyber-monitoring cell noticed the activities of the ring on social media and it strengthened the monitoring after busting the ring, said Momen.