Security guard's killing: Police can't catch accused as his phone switched off!

Dhaka police are scratching their heads over their inability to arrest Mofidul Islam, the accused in the case over the death of a security guard in Dhaka's Rajabazar area. The reason? His mobile phone is switched off.

Officers also say they have not been able to locate him despite conducting regular raids since the incident five days ago. 

Sub-Inspector Anwar Ali, the investigation officer, told TBS on Tuesday (9 July), "Our raids have been continuing since the case was filed. But the whereabouts of the accused could not be traced as his phone is switched off."

On 4 July,  Fazlul Haque, 25, a security guard at Shyamolia building in Rajabazar, was struck by a car driven by Mofidul Islam, a flat owner of the building. Fazlul was taken to Shaheed Suhrawardy Medical College and Hospital, where  doctors declared him dead.

"We are suspecting that the accident happened because the driver pressed the accelerator instead of the brake. We're looking into it. We're also trying to contact the car owner," said  Md Ahad Ali, officer-in-charge of Sher-e-Bangla Nagar Police Station, on the day of the incident.

However, Tejgaon police sources said Mofidul had asked his driver to vacate the driving seat and drove it right into the gate in a fit of rage as the guard was delaying to open it. This resulted in the fatal accident.

Fazlul's wife Sharifa Begum filed a case the same day with Sher-E-Bangla Nagar Police Station under the Road Transport Act, naming Mofidul, a former official of the Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA), as the accused.

The next day, Sharifa told TBS  that it was a "planned murder". 

"I have two daughters. The elder is five years old and the younger is 16 months. My daughters have become orphans. I want justice for my husband's murder."

As this correspondent called her again on Tuesday to know the progress of the case, her mother picked up the phone.

She said, "I have contacted the police several times. But they are not arresting the accused. The day after the incident, my daughter was asked to withdraw the case and settle the matter. But we did not agree."

Earlier, Minara Begum, the sister of the deceased, said two politically influential people in Rajabazar were trying to "manage the whole matter". The family was brought to a local councillor's office for a "settlement" to cover it up.

Law enforcement sources said Mofidul Islam was in Dhaka and was treated at the National Institute of Traumatology and Orthopaedic Rehabilitation for injuries after the incident.

They also indicated that an influential leader in Tejgaon was trying to prevent the arrest. A recent meeting of cops, led by an ADC-level officer at the Pan Pacific Sonargaon Dhaka, discussed his arrest but no decision was reached, they added. 

Ruling out any interference or pressure, Sher-E-Bangla Nagar Police Station OC Md Ahad Ali told TBS via WhatsApp, "We are trying to arrest the accused. But his whereabouts cannot be traced as his phone is switched off."

He added, "I am not aware of any settlement. Even if there is a settlement, we will file a chargesheet in this case."