Testing liquors in narcotic cases has to wait as CID is busy inquiring about 'bigshots'

The Criminal Investigation Department says it is busy verifying information gleaned in interrogations of the accused, including Pori Moni, in narcotics cases while evidence collected during the arrests is yet to be sent for lab test.

"All the accused named politicians, businessmen and other influential people as being involved with them," said Sheikh Omar Faruq, additional deputy inspector general of the CID, Dhaka metropolitan.

He, however, did not specify what kind of involvement or relationships the accused, when interrogated, claimed to have had with the influentials.

"Accused can bring false allegations, so we have to crosscheck," Omar Faruq told The Business Standard.

On the reasons behind the delay in testing samples of liquors seized under Narcotics Control Act, 2018, he said, "We have our own lab [Central Chemical Lab in the capital's Mohakhali]. We will decide when to send samples for test."

Dilip Kumar Saha, chief chemical examiner at the lab, on Sunday afternoon said the lab had not yet received samples of liquors seized.  

Omar Faruq said some newspapers were intentionally spreading false information and blackmailing a few businessmen over findings in interrogations.

"CID works differently than others (Rapid Action Battalion and Detective Branch). CID will never harass any businessman before it gets any foolproof evidence," he added.   

Meanwhile, four days' remand of Pori Moni will end on Monday. She will then be produced in court with 7-10 days' remand prayer.

Omar Faruq said the CID would not disclose the names that had come up during interrogations for the sake of investigation.

"We are investigating whether the bigshots were involved in any crime."

The CID took the charge of investigations into narcotics cases filed against Pori Moni and producer Nazrul Islam Raz, a friend of the actress, on Friday.

The day before, they took cases filed against Helena Jahangir, and models Marium Akter Mou, Faria Mahabub Piasha, and Piasha's associate Mishu Hasan.

The CID official said, "We have not received any complaint of blackmailing against the arrestees but we are getting information about their involvement." He did not elaborate on the involvement.

All the cases are tied to narcotics, save for one bringing charges of fraudulence against Helena.

The CID seized some devices from Pori Moni's residence on Saturday, Omar Faruq said, adding investigators would examine those in its IT forensic lab.

The Rab filed a case against Pori Moni under the Narcotics Control Act with Banani Police Station on Thursday. On that day, Pori and Raz were placed on remand for four days.

A Dhaka court on Tuesday placed Helena Jahangir, who recently lost her Awami League post over Chakrijibi League scandal, on remand for 14 days in four cases filed against her.

Another Dhaka court placed Piyasha and Mou in seven-day fresh remand on Friday after the previous three-day remand ended in narcotics cases.

Shariful Hasan alias Mishu Hasan, said to be chief coordinator of Piasha, was remanded for three days on Thursday in a narcotics case. Earlier, he was remanded for six days.

Meanwhile, the police headquarters formed a committee to look into the alleged relationship between Pori Moni and police official Md Golam Saqlain, said Haider Ali Khan, deputy inspector general at the police headquarters.

He could not say when a prob report will be submitted by the committee.