C T Online Desk: The victims claim that centering on a case over the ownership of about 3.25 acres of land, they were threatened and physically assaulted.
A businessman’s family was beaten and robbed at their home on MM Ali Road in Chittagong.
The victim’s family alleged that during the attack, the robbers looted jewellery, money, and other valuables.
In two separate midnight attacks on June 19 and 21, the residence of businessman Syed Ziad Rahman in Manola Hill, under Chawkbazar police station in Chittagong, was vandalized and looted.
The victims claimed that centering on a lawsuit over the ownership of about 3.25 acres of land in Manola Hill, the businessman’s family had been threatened and physically assaulted.
Chawkbazar Police Officer-in-Charge (OC) Ferdous Jahan said both the parties had lodged FIRs on the land issue.
The OC told Dhaka Tribune that on behalf of businessman Syed Ziad Rahman, his son Syed Hammad Rahman lodged an FIR with Chawkbazar police station on June 22 . However, before that FIR was lodged, another FIR was filed on June 20 on behalf of the accused.
The two cases are under investigation. The details of the incident will be known subject to investigation, OC added.
According to police sources, on June 20, the managing director of Standard Rose Villa Housing Limited, Mohammad Nurul Islam, filed an FIR accusing four people, including businessman Syed Ziad Rahman, of illegally entering a house, extorting money and beating him for murder. No arrests have been made in either case so far.
The victims of the incident on Manola Hill have not yet returned to their home. Syed Hammad Rahman claimed that the attackers were present at their residence and were posing a threat to his family.
Syed Hammad mentioned in the FIR, “I was getting ready to go to bed around 12:20 pm on June 19. The police arrived outside, the guard of our residence then informed us over the phone. 10–12 police officers arrived at our home.”
“At the time, I was informed by a policeman that he had a warrant. I informed the policemen that no accused was present in our home. The police entered the home, searched every room and the roof, and then left.
Later, an alarm sounded from the CCTV control room about 20 minutes after the police had left. Before the residents of the house could respond, masked assailants broke through the back door and entered the home with guns and sharp weapons.
The assailants held Syed Hammad and his family members at gunpoint and disconnected the CCTV camera.
“They grabbed me and my cousin Nisa at gunpoint and made us get into our car. They held my cousin at gunpoint in the backseat and told me to drive. Two white and one black private cars were parked while I drove out of the gate. At the time, Harunur Rashid and Nurul Islam were standing close to the car.”
According to the gunmen’s instructions, he drove to a road in the GEC OR Nizam Residential area and parked. At that time, the gunmen were talking to another person on their mobile phones.
At 4:20 am in the morning, the gunmen told him to list his residence as Rose Villa. They then left with their compatriots who had arrived on motorcycles.
Hammad returned home to find that jewellery, money, and other valuables totalling about Tk1.23 crore had been looted.
Hadid Ahmed, a member of the victim’s family, told Dhaka Tribune that two days after the looting, on June 21, the same miscreants attacked the house on Manola Hill again. “At 12.05 AM, 100-120 armed goons attacked our house. When they entered our house, they asked all of us to leave. We were allowed 10 mins to pack our things. Then we left in our own cars. They also beat up our guards and staff and forced all of them to leave as well.”
Meanwhile, according to the FIR of Standard Rose Villa Housing Limited, four more people, including businessman Syed Ziad Rahman and 20 to 25 unidentified accused, allegedly broke into Manola Hill illegally with the intention of beating, killing and extorting money from its residents.
The FIR also mentions vandalism, causing damage, and posing a threat of minor and major injuries.
Md Nurul Islam, managing director of Standard Rose Villa Housing Limited, declined to comment on the incident when approached on Monday.
