OC blames victim’s expensive phone for mugging

Just a three-minute walk from Mohammadpur Police Station in Dhaka, a journalist named Ahmad Wadud was attacked with a machete and mugged around 11:00 pm on Thursday. His wife, who was nearby but not immediately beside him, was unharmed. The assailants snatched his mobile phone and wallet containing some money. 

The victim immediately went to the police station and reported the incident to the Officer-in-Charge (OC). Upon hearing the details, OC Ali Iftekhar Hasan allegedly showed Wadud his own mobile phone and remarked, “Even as an OC, I use this cheap phone. If you roam around with an expensive one, of course you’ll get mugged!”

Wadud said that instead of receiving support, he faced rude behavior from the police. He detailed the entire incident in a Facebook post at 3:24 am on Friday.

When Wadud requested action regarding the mugging, the OC reportedly told him to contact Assistant Sub-Inspector (ASI) Anarul and wait at a nearby bus stand.

In his post, Wadud wrote that he went to three different locations, including the bus stand, to find ASI Anarul, who was accompanied by seven to eight other police officers. After hearing his account, ASI Anarul said, “Let’s go to the crime scene.” Wadud then accompanied them in a police vehicle to the location.

However, despite the victim reportedly identifying the muggers at the scene, ASI Anarul and his team did not detain them.

When contacted about the incident, DMP Additional Police Commissioner (Crime and Operations) SN Nazrul Islam told Jago News that action is being taken. “Strict measures will be taken against all who behaved inappropriately with the victim. The police are serious about this,” he said, adding that two police personnel from Mohammadpur Police Station have already been withdrawn from duty.