RAB arrests death-row convict who escaped Kashimpur prison after Aug 5 unrest

The Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) has arrested a death-row convict who escaped from Kashimpur High Security Central Prison during the violence that followed the ouster of the Awami League government in August 2024.

A specialised operational team of RAB-4 arrested Md Abdullah Sikdar, 24, from the Darus Salam Police Station area in Dhaka on the afternoon of July 10, acting on a tip-off, according to a RAB statement.

Abdullah had been sentenced to death in a murder case filed in Gopalganj and had been lodged at Kashimpur High Security Central Prison since December 23, 2023.

According to RAB, following the fall of the government on August 5, 2024, violence and a deterioration in the security situation erupted inside the prison. On the morning of August 6, inmates came out of the prison building, began rioting and setting fires, held prison guards hostage and attempted to escape.

At one stage, Abdullah and other inmates allegedly broke an electric pole and used it as a makeshift ladder to scale the prison boundary wall before fleeing with a large number of other prisoners.

After the escape, prison authorities filed a case with Konabari Police Station against the inmates who had fled.

The incident drew widespread public attention and was extensively reported in the media. RAB subsequently launched a shadow investigation to track down the escaped inmates.

According to the elite force, Abdullah went into hiding after his escape, moving between different parts of the country and living under various disguises to evade arrest.

Using intelligence and information technology, RAB later confirmed that he was staying in the Darus Salam Police Station area. A specialised team of RAB-4 then conducted the raid and arrested him.

During preliminary interrogation, Abdullah told investigators that on October 7, 2021, he and two associates hacked their neighbour, Lutfor Rahman, to death with a hammer and an axe over the recovery of money owed in interest.

A murder case was subsequently filed with Tungipara Police Station in Gopalganj under Sections 302 and 34 of the Penal Code.

Abdullah and his two associates were later arrested and produced before a court. After the completion of the trial, the court sentenced all three to death, and they were sent to Kashimpur High Security Central Prison.

The arrested convict has been handed over to the relevant police station for further legal action, RAB said.