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Eight people were directly involved in the robbery of Tk 1.21 crore from a petrol pump in Uttara, while police have arrested five suspects and recovered Tk 12 lakh, Dhaka Metropolitan Police’s Detective Branch (DB) said.
The five suspects were arrested from different areas of Dhaka and Narayanganj on Friday. They were identified as Md Ilias Shikdar, 36, Zafar, 36, Md Rabiul Islam alias Rubel, 34, Mintu Rari, 23, and Sagar Baroi, 40.
DB officials said they recovered four 7.65mm pistols, six magazines, 21 rounds of ammunition, Tk 12 lakh in stolen cash, fake RAB identity cards, vests, caps, walkie-talkies, handcuffs, several number plates and a motorcycle from the suspects.
The robbery took place last Sunday morning in front of Crown Plaza on the Airport Road. A group of armed men riding three motorcycles allegedly intercepted a vehicle carrying cash from DL Petrol Pump to a Pubali Bank branch in Uttara’s Sector 1.
According to the case statement, the robbers brandished firearms and attacked petrol pump assistant manager Mohammad Al Amin with a machete before fleeing towards Abdullahpur with the cash-filled bag.
DB Additional Commissioner Md Shafiqul Islam said investigators first arrested Ilias and Zafar from Siddhirganj in Narayanganj. Based on information obtained from them, Rubel was arrested in Matuail and Mintu in Kajlarpar, Jatrabari.
Police recovered Tk 3 lakh of the stolen money from Rubel’s rented residence and later arrested Sagar in the Postogola area with another Tk 9 lakh.
Shafiqul said Sagar is a professional criminal facing 13 cases and had previously been involved in similar robberies targeting people carrying cash from financial institutions.
Rubel faces four cases, Mintu three, Zafar two and Ilias one, according to the DB.
The DB chief said CCTV footage showed eight people directly involved in the robbery, while the suspects claimed that two additional people were involved.
He said the stolen money was divided among the group, with the alleged masterminds receiving larger shares and others receiving portions based on their roles.
Investigators believe the group may also be linked to several other robberies in Dhaka.
However, the alleged mastermind remains at large. Shafiqul said three of the five arrested suspects had directly participated in the robbery, while investigators had found no evidence so far of involvement by anyone from the petrol pump.
Police are withholding the identities of the alleged mastermind and other suspects for the sake of the ongoing investigation and further arrests.
The DB said efforts are underway to arrest the remaining suspects and recover the rest of the stolen money.