Law enforcers special drives against snatchers are yet to bring down the number mugging incidents in the capital.
Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) has carried out a series of massive drives to arrest snatchers and robbers after a policeman was killed and a private television journalist injured by muggers.
Members of the DMP arrested 800 muggers from different parts of the capital in the last 15 days.
On the issue of the murder of traffic constable Moniruzzaman Talukder Inspector General of Police Chowdhury Abdullah Al-Mamun directed the DMP Commissioner to intensify the drive against snatchers and robbers to make the city safe for the residents and the commuters. As per his directive, the raid has been intensified.
Meanwhile, Adnan Sayed Rakib, student of Ideal College in Dhanmondi and an HSC examination candidate died after being stabbed by muggers in Dhaka's Dhanmondi area on night of July 16.
Rakib was returning home with a friend from Dhanmondi Lake when they encountered the mugger, according to local police station chief Parvez Islam.
The muggers take advantage of load-shedding and dimly-lit areas at night to snatch away valuables, spreading panic among people.
According to DMP headquarters, around 500 muggers are active in various places under 50 police stations.
The number of people involved in mugging and similar crimes is high in areas under Tejgaon Division, followed by Ramna, Gulshan, Mirpur, Uttara, Motijheel, Wari and Lalbagh, according to a DMP list.
According to law enforcers, the areas prone to mugging are -- Dhaka City College to Mohammadpur, Dainik Bangla to Motijheel, Banani to Kuril, various roads of Dhaka University, the road from Nilkhet to Lalbagh, from Dhanmondi to Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban, road in front of Sangsad Bhaban, road leading from Mirpur-1 to Mirpur-10, Zoo Road, Kachukhet area, Dayaganj intersection to Jatrabari, in front of Golap Shah Mazarin Gulistan, Farmgate to Karwan Bazar, the road from Malibagh to Moghbazar, Moghbazar railway gate to Rampura bridge, and various roads of Uttara.
A high official of DB police told the Daily Observer on Sunday there are at least 20 godfathers of snatchers active in the capital. The godfathers (shelters) work 24 hours a day with field-level snatchers. They get a share of the snatchers.
In addition to robbery, various crimes including theft and drug sales were committed by 'field workers'.
Efforts are underway to bring the godfathers under the law. Those involved in the Dhanmondi incident have been arrested. He also said that a large part of the robbery money is going to Chanchal who is staying in America.
He is grabbing crores of taka from abroad. DB's action on the matter is ongoing. In response to a question, he said, Godfathers are gentle criminals. They are also associated with political parties. They also participate in various meetings regularly.
Tk 15 lakh was mugged from an import oriented company staff at Gulshan of the capital on May 10. The Dhaka Metropolitan Detective Police investigated the incident and found that the robbery was planned far away from America.
The robbery happened according to the plan of Sakhawat Hossain Chanchal and Mehdi Hasan, fugitive terrorists hiding in America. They were monitoring the incident by following the video footage of the CCTV.
According to the footage, four robbers who robbed the money were all cadres sent by Chanchal and Mehdi. DB arrested four people in connection with the robbery and gets sensational information from them.
