Outlaws Continue to Rein Over South-Western Region

111 arms out of 121 looted in 17 yrs remain without trace

11 November 2009, 17:00 PM

Quazi Amanullah, Khulna

Law enforcers failed to recover a staggering 111 out of 121 firearms looted by outlaws from law enforcers and a malkhana (government storeroom) in the south-western region during 1990 to 2007. Law enforcers could recover only 10 arms that were looted from Rarhuli police camp in Paikgachha upazila of Khulna district during this period. Outlaws killed at least nine law enforcers while looting these firearms. But the killers could not be detected and dockets of these cases are still gathering dust as investigations of those were abandoned due to lack of proper evidence. Outlaws looted these arms from police outposts, patrol police, on duty law enforcers in running trains, fish processing factories and jute mills. Seven rifles were looted in 1990 from on-duty police in a train when it was crossing Kotchandpur of Jhenidah district. One rifle was looted from police at Halsha station in 1991. Criminals looted two rifles after stabbing patrol police at Bablatala of Jessore town in 1992. Outlaws stabbed a policeman to death at Charabhita Bazar of Jessore town and looted a rifle from him in 1994 while another rifle was looted from railway police in a moving train at Sundarpur of Jhenaidah district the same year. They looted a rifle from Dobra branch of Krishi Bank, three guns and a rifle from a gun shop in Jessore, four rifles from on-duty police at Uthali of Chuadanga in 1995. Outlaws killed a policeman during their arms looting at Uthali. In 1996, they looted ten rifles from Rarhuli police camp in Paikgachha upazila of Khulna district. Outlaws looted a revolver after stabbing a police officer at Bagharpara of Jessore district in 1997 and five rifles from Rupsha Sea Foods in Khulna in December the same year. They looted three rifles from on-duty Ansars in a passenger launch in Koira upazila of Khulna district in 1998, four rifles and six guns from the storeroom of Khulna Cable Factory, a sub machine gun killing an on-duty Ansar commander in an inter-city express train at Barobazar of Jessore, two rifles, 12 guns, five revolvers, five pistols from the malkhana (storeroom) of Khulna Collectorate Building, a double barrel gun from a house at Bagmara in Khulna city and four rifles from patrol police at Bashkhali under Rupsha upazila the same year. Outlaws looted 12 rifles from Ansars on duty at Akij Jute Mills in January 1999, a rifle from a Sonali Bank branch in Kushtia in 2000, a double barrel gun from a shop in Rupsha upazila in 2001, a shotgun from patrol police at Khulna Customs Ghat in 2002, a rifle from a security guard at Keshabpur branch of Janata Bank, a pistol after killing a sub-inspector of police at Jhenidah, a double barrel gun from a fish trader's house at Majhirgati village under Digholia upazila of Khulna district, a double barrel gun from the house of a businessman in Kalia upazila of Narail in the same year. In 2003, they looted two guns from on-duty security guards at Kushtia Textile Mills, a shotgun killing two on-duty policemen at Sheikhpara in Khulna city, 19 rifles from Ansars on duty at Daulatpur Jute Mills, a rifle and two SLRs killing two patrol policemen on road at Fakirhat of Bagerhat district. When asked, Khulna Range DIG of police Md Himayetuddin said efforts are going on to recover the remaining arms looted by outlaws in the south-western region during last 17 years. It is very difficult to recover those looted arms by detecting the outlaws who were involved in the looting, he added.