RANGPUR, Jan 20, 2022 (BSS) - Rapid Action Battalion (RAB)-13 arrested

two more members of an organized gang of abductors, including their
ringleader, from Gaibandha and Rangpur on Wednesday night.

     "The elite force arrested ringleader Echha Mian, 23, from Dhaperhat area
in Gaibandha and his associate Abdul Latif, 45, from Savar Hemayetpur area in
Dhaka," a press release said here this evening.

     Earlier, RAB-13 rescued two abducted nursery traders of Khulna and
arrested three members of the organized gang of kidnappers with arms and
ammunition from village Phulbari Chawra in Gangachara upazila of Rangpur on
January 14 last.

     The rescued persons are nursery traders Khondker Shahabul Islam, 57, and
Md. Faruk Hossain, 32, of Goalkhali area under Khalishpur upazila in Khulna
district.

     The three abductors arrested earlier were Bachchu Chandra, 52, Swapan
Roy, 22, and Khadija Begum, 37, of Rangpur district. Earlier, they were
handed over to Gangachara Model Thana police.

     The rescued nursery traders have a nursery and online nursery business
in Goalkhali area of Khalishpur upazila in Khulna.

     The abductors visited the nursery and tactfully asked Shahabul and Faruk
to come to Rangpur to set up a nursery in Gangachara upazila.

     "Shahabul and Faruk came to Rangpur on January 13 last when the
abductors took them to the house of one Ruhul Amin, 52, at village Phulbari
Chawra in Gangachara upazila," the release said.

     The abductors confined Shahabul and Faruk in a room there, demanded Taka
five lakh as ransom for their release and realized Taka 20,000 through bKash
from their relatives.

     Following the bKash money transaction clue, the elite force rescued the
two victims and arrested three kidnappers on January 14 from Gangachara when
ringleader Echha Mian and Abdul Latif managed to escape.

    During interrogation, the arrested persons admitted that they had been
involved in kidnapping people and releasing the victims after realizing
ransom for a long time.

     "The elite force handed over the two arrested persons to Gangachara
Model police station today," the release said.