Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) has rescued an 8-month-old baby girl, Arisa Jannat Zaifa, two days after she was abducted.
The operation took place in the Mohammadpur Thana area on Saturday night, where the mastermind behind the abduction, Md. Fatema Akhter Shapla, was arrested.
RAB-10 conducted a raid in the Nabinagar Housing area of Mohammadpur, capturing 27-year-old Shapla, wife of Md. Selim Hossain, who is originally from Alamdanga, Chuadanga, according to a RAB press release. The rescued baby was safely returned to her family.
During initial questioning, Shapla admitted to planning the kidnapping and looting the victim’s house. The incident began on November 15 when a woman named Farzana Akhter’s house, located near Azimpur Medical Staff Quarters, was robbed. The criminals took cash, gold ornaments, and abducted Farzana's baby girl.
Following the abduction, Farzana's family reached out to RAB-10 for assistance. RAB intensified intelligence surveillance and tracked down the perpetrators after receiving the report.
Farzana Akhter had been living with her family in a rented house in Azimpur for three years. According to RAB, Shapla had befriended Farzana just a week before the crime, introducing herself under a false name, Raisa, and claiming to be from Naogaon. Shapla also presented herself as a BBA student and office assistant at the Secretariat’s transport pool.
Convincing Farzana of her need for a place to stay while studying, Shapla proposed renting a room in Farzana’s house, promising to help care for Farzana's child. On November 14, Shapla paid a Tk 2,000 advance and spent the night at Farzana’s house.
The following morning, Shapla informed Farzana that her "cousins" were coming from the village. Around 8:30 a.m., Shapla, along with three accomplices pretending to be her cousins, entered the home. They then threatened Farzana with sharp weapons, tied her up, and looted the house, taking cash, gold, and the baby.
Using advanced intelligence and surveillance technology, RAB tracked Shapla to Mohammadpur's Nabinagar Housing area, where she was arrested. Shapla, who had been living in Mohammadpur since 2010, completed her SSC in Bogra and HSC in Dhaka, later enrolling in a marketing program in the capital. However, she did not finish her degree and married in 2023, moving into her husband's apartment a few months prior to the crime.
Legal action is being taken against Shapla, and investigations into the case are ongoing.
