Rapid Action Battalion members, in a drive, arrested a Rohingya couple along with 5,300 pieces of yaba and Tk 1.17 crore cash at a flat in Chandgaon residential area of Chattogram city early today.
The arrestees are Shawkat Islam (32) and his wife Morjina (28), our Chattogram correspondent reports quoting Rab officials.
A team of Rab-7 also recovered four fake Bangladeshi national identity (NID) cards from the couple, which they used to rent the flat.
Flight Lt Ali Ashraf Tushar, company commander of Rab-7, Chandgaon camp, told The Daily Star that “from the flat, the couple used to sell yaba pills, smuggled from Cox’s Bazar.”
“Acting on a tip-off, a team of Rab raided a flat at B-block of Chandgaon residential area around 1:00am and detained the couple with 5,300 yaba pills,” added the Rab official.
Sensing danger, the couple threw away cash from their windows but Rab later recovered Tk 1.17 crore, said Ali Ashraf.
During interrogation, the couple said they came to Bangladesh in 2008 and since then they have been involved in yaba smuggling. They changed their address frequently to dodge the law enforcing agencies, the Rab official said.
The couple was handed over to Chandgaon police where a case was lodged in this connection.
