Man involved in beating, harassing women at Cox's Bazar beach arrested
One of the victims filed a case against six people over the incident
Police have arrested Mohammad Farukul Islam, the man seen on viral footage harassing several women at a Cox's Bazar sea beach.
"The youth was detained from Bhola Babu's Petrol Pump of Cox's Bazar Friday night," said Javed Mahmud, an inspector of the district's Detective Branch of Police.
Police identified Fakhrul, 23, after analysing the videos, said Inspector Javed. "He was detained and taken into police custody for questioning."
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Farukul is from Chunti area in Chattogram's Lohagara upazila. He lives with his family in Cox's Bazar.
On Saturday (14 September), one of the victims filed a case with Cox's Bazar Sadar Police Station against six people including Farukul, Officer-in-Charge Md Mochiur Rahman told The Business Standard.
Several video clips showing a group of men harassing three women on Wednesday went viral sparking outrage on social media. Farukul was heard saying the women were carrying out "shameful activities" at the beach.
He even uploaded a video on his Facebook account, in which he was seen chasing down and beating up some women with a stick in the Laldighi area.
In one of the videos, a woman sitting on a beach bench was seen surrounded by the group at night. They were seen asking the woman what she was doing at the beach at a late hour.
Although the woman said she was a tourist, the answer did not satisfy them. At one point, they chased the woman away from the beach, alleging that she had "damaged the atmosphere".
In one video, a woman was seen surrounded by curious onlookers, and some youths were standing beside her with sticks in their hands. At one point, the woman was forced to do sit-ups holding ears, and indecent remarks were hurled at her.
Another clip shows a woman at a police box with Farukul. The woman was complaining to the police that he had snatched away her mobile phone. She was crying and requesting them to return it, saying she would delete everything on her phone if needed.
A number of social media users said Farukul was a local coordinator of the Anti-discrimination Student Movement, a claim which the leaders and activists of the movement in Cox's Bazar denied.
"People from all walks of life participated in the recent movement. But that doesn't justify anyone to call themselves a coordinator," said Shahedul Islam Shahed, a coordinator of the Anti-discrimination Student Movement in Cox's Bazar.
