crime
What kind of house is more stolen during Eid holidays, what to do to prevent it
Ahmadul Hasan
Dhaka
Update: 07 April 2024, 14:57
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During the Eid holidays, the theft of grills is more common
About a year and a half ago, Jabbar Molla was arrested by the Dhaka Metropolitan Police along with five associates on the charge of theft. Jabbar was then 67 years old. Allegedly, he stole from different houses for 50 years.
According to the police, the members of this gang, who were arrested on October 8, 2022, visited different areas and targeted different houses for theft. They mainly look at two things to fix the target. One. The house that does not have a doorman. Two. A house that does not have a closed circuit (CC) camera.
Around the same time, a man named Azizul Haque Fakir was arrested by the DB on charges of theft.
According to DB, Azizul is a member of a Union Parishad in Madaripur. He built a band of thieves. The members of this gang roam around in different areas of Dhaka with cars or pickups after evening.
Members of this circle also set targets by looking at two factors. One. There is no light in any house at night. Two. Is it possible to avoid CCTV footage and steal it?
DB officials with Jabbar Mollah and others arrested for theft Photo: Courtesy of DB
It is understood that both burglaries target homes with less security. The police say that some gangs check whether there are fancy chandeliers inside the house or not. Thieves think that there is a possibility of getting more gold and cash in the house where such a chandelier is present.
According to DMP sources, many people leave Dhaka and go to their village homes during the Eid holidays. At this time, thefts increased by cutting grills at homes in different areas. Burglary houses usually do not have CCTV cameras, no lights and no doorman.
A police official told Prothom Alo that in some cases the involvement of domestic workers with the gang of thieves is found. Such domestic workers do not work in one house for long. Before Eid, the housekeepers give the information to the thieves that which house will be empty and what kind of wealth is in which house. Therefore, this police officer suggested hiring domestic workers by verifying identity card, mobile number or through someone known.
DMP Media Wing Deputy Commissioner (DC) Farooq Hossain told Daily Star News that police security alone is not enough to prevent theft. Police will do their utmost to ensure the safety of citizens. Also, landlords and tenants should be careful. You have to ensure the safety of the house yourself.
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Stealing for 50 years, this is the first time he has been caught
How many thefts in any area of Dhaka
The statistics of the crime department of Dhaka Metropolitan Police say that in 2023, there were 547 cases of Sindhel theft. In 2021 this number was 582 and in 2022 it was 713.
However, DMP officials say the actual theft is much higher. Only recorded thefts are included in this figure. Many times the victim does not want to file a lawsuit. Many times the police also do not take the case. And sindhel chori means stealing by cutting the sindh in the house. But in Dhaka houses, theft is mainly done by cutting the grill or breaking the lock of the house. Basically the cases of house theft are called Sindhel theft.
Analyzing the crime department data, it has been found that in 2023, the highest number of Sindhel theft cases were reported in Tejgaon division. 99 cases have been registered in this department. After that, the highest number of 95 cases occurred in Motijheel division. Apart from this, more than 70 cases have been filed in Wari, Gulshan and Mirpur divisions.
Rifat Rahman Shamim was in charge of the DC of DB Gulshan Division when Jabbar and his six associates were arrested on charges of theft for 50 years. He is now in charge of Gulshan Division DC.
He told Daily Star News that most burglaries occur in houses in Bhatara, Bashundhara residential area and Badda area within Gulshan division. Many houses in these areas do not have CCTV cameras. Thieves gang members decide to steal from such houses. Those who are leaving Dhaka must ensure home security. Neighbors and security personnel should be asked to keep an eye on the house.
DC Rifat Rahman Shamim also said that many people want to go home in the name of relatives of families who go to villages. In this case, the security personnel must be told that no one will be allowed to enter the house without confirming the identity.
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They stole the office by cutting the grill
DMP Commissioner’s advice to prevent theft
Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) Commissioner Habibur Rahman is requesting the residents of the capital to follow 13 instructions before going home for the Eid holiday. Among these are five guidelines for home security and theft prevention. These instructions were preached by imams before Friday prayers in various mosques last Friday. DMP Commissioner’s instructions to prevent theft are-
- CCTV (closed circuit) cameras should be installed in homes. It should be checked whether the CCTV camera installed earlier is working or not.
- Electric lighting system should be kept around the house.
- Cash or jewelery should be kept safe with bank or close relatives.
- Movement of unknown suspects wearing face masks and head caps should be monitored at night or day together. If necessary, call 999.
- Alarm should be installed to prevent motorcycle theft. An alarm will sound if someone touches the motorcycle. Marine anchor chain made of steel shall be used for locking. Motorcycles should be equipped with GPS trackers and use high-quality disc locks on wheels.
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Wanted to be an actor, now ‘Grillkata Chor’ to get drug money
Dhaka
Published: 25 September 2023, 16:48
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Rezwan Ahmadcci’s photo taken from camera footage before entering a house
Various valuables including six loads of gold, two lakh taka were stolen from the second floor of a six-storey house in Mohammadpur, Dhaka. This incident of theft by cutting the grill happened on June 26. Two days after that was the holy Eid-ul-Azha. The house was ‘targeted’ as people went home to the village for Eid holidays.
The Detective Department (DB) of Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) recently arrested a person named Rezwan Ahmed (38) from Mohammadpur area after investigating the case related to the theft. This specialized branch of the police says that in the last 15 years, Rezwan has stolen grills from around five hundred houses in different areas of Dhaka. There are at least five cases against him in different police stations of Dhaka. He was arrested by the police several times before.
According to sources related to the investigation, Rezwan stole from houses in Dhanmondi, Lalmatia, Mohammadpur, Kalabagan, Newmarket, Gulshan and Banani areas. He steals from four to five houses every month to get money for drugs.
During the interrogation of Rezwan, DB said that Rezwan visited different areas in the evening and fixed the ‘target’. In the house where the light is not on or the clothes are not hanging on the balcony, he assumes that there is no one in that house. Later, late at night or early in the morning, he climbed into that house through the back side of the house. He has a grill cutter with him.
Climb up the wall like ‘Spiderman’ and first cut the balcony and window grill. Later, he went inside and ran away with valuables including gold and money.
Officials related to DB’s investigation said that Rezwan lived with his family in a slum in Hazaribagh area. His father worked in a leather factory there. Passed SSC from a local school. After that, he cooperated in his elder brother’s business for some time. After passing HSC, he started hanging out with his friends in the Dhaka University area.
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8 lakh contract to ‘steal’
During interrogation, Rezwan told DB that his dream was to become an actor. He trained in a theater workshop to realize that dream. Also acted in a short film. Because of that performance, he became friends with some people. Became addicted to phensidyl after falling in line with those friends. Later, he started stealing in the Gulshan-Banani area with an elder brother named Farhad to collect drug money.
Police say, in 15 years, Rezwan has cut the grills of more than 500 houses and stolen them from CCTV camera footage.
During the interrogation of Rezwan, DB said that initially he used to live with Farhad with a van. Farhad used to steal from different houses. Rezwan used to get share from there. Later he started stealing from Farhad by taking the stealing technique. After that, Rezwan has been stealing for 15 years.
DB Lalbagh Division Deputy Commissioner Moshiur Rahman told Daily Star News that many creative people get involved in various crimes due to intoxication. Collected drug money by stealing and robbing. It is very sad.
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