High Court orders release of innocent man jailed for 10 months over mistaken identity
The High Court has ordered the immediate release of a man who spent 10 months in prison after being mistakenly arrested in place of a convict in an arms case due to a similarity in their names.
A High Court bench comprising Justice JBM Hassan and Justice Aziz Ahmed Bhuiyan passed the order on Sunday (November 8), following a judicial inquiry that established the man's innocence.
The man, Md Almas, is the son of Sheikh Khalil and a resident of Kusumhati in Dohar, Dhaka.
Assistant Attorney General Barrister Mohiuddin Hanif represented the state during the hearing, while Advocate Tanvir Ahmed appeared for Almas.
Confirming the order, Hanif told reporters that the court directed Almas's release after the judicial inquiry established that he had been detained despite having no connection to the case.
A judicial inquiry report submitted to the High Court on November 5 found that the actual convict, Md Almach, had been sentenced to 10 years in prison in an arms case but had remained absconding since the beginning. He is currently living in Canada.
Instead of Almach, police arrested Almas and sent him to prison, mistaking him for the convicted accused.
According to the inquiry report, Almach is a resident of Purba Dhoair village under Noyabari Union in Dohar. He was convicted in an arms case filed with Mirpur Police Station in Dhaka.
The report confirmed that Almas was not an accused in the case and that the two men were entirely different individuals.
After his arrest, Almas filed a writ petition with the High Court seeking legal remedy. Following an initial hearing, the court ordered a judicial inquiry to establish the circumstances of the arrest. Senior Judicial Magistrate Mahfuzur Rahman subsequently conducted the inquiry and submitted a report.
The report identified several administrative and investigative lapses that led to the mistaken arrest. It found that incorrect addresses had been recorded in the forwarding documents of the original case, police reports and arrest warrant.
Almas's father and grandfather were identified as Sheikh Khalil and Sheikh Nawab Ali, respectively, while Almach's were Khalil Ahmed and Sheikh Shahor Ali. Almach was the only brother among three sisters, whereas Almas has two brothers and two sisters.
Almach was 24 in 2002, while Almas, born on December 10, 1985, was around 16 or 17 that year. Their occupations and residential histories also differed, with Almach previously living in Paikpara, Mirpur, while Almas earned his living through agricultural and electrical work.
Based on these discrepancies in their identities, the High Court ordered Almas's immediate release.