Extortion Case: Two Brothers Among Four Arrested in Dhaka

Police escorted four individuals arrested in an extortion case from Dhaka’s CMM Court to the jail on Sunday afternoon. The arrests were made in connection with an extortion attempt at the residence of a former Awami League parliament member in Gulshan, Dhaka.

Among the arrested are two brothers from Rajshahi, Sakadaun Siam and Sadman Sadab, both students at Presidency University in Dhaka. Their father, SM Kabiruzzaman, works at a gas filling station and struggles to accept the news of his sons' arrests. “It’s hard to believe they could be involved in extortion,” he said.

Originally from Gopalpur, Natore, Kabiruzzaman moved to Rajshahi a decade ago after selling his ancestral home due to business losses. The family now resides in a rented house near NB Filling and CNG Station in Kechuatil, Rajshahi. Kabiruzzaman earns a modest income, most of which goes toward rent, leaving little for his sons’ education. Previously, the brothers supported themselves through tutoring but stopped a few months ago and no longer relied on family funds. Speaking at the filling station on Monday afternoon, Kabiruzzaman said, “My income is low, and most of it goes to rent. The boys used to tutor, but recently, I heard they got involved in politics. On Sunday morning, I learned they were arrested for extortion. I can’t believe it—they pray five times a day and keep beards. It’s hard to accept they’d be involved in this.”

Siam and Sadab completed their secondary and higher secondary education at Kharkhari High School in Rajshahi. Mobasher Ali, a teacher at the school and head of the Rajshahi metropolitan coordination committee of the National Citizens Party (NCP), said, “They were our students. Very good boys. I’m stunned to hear about their arrests.”

Colleagues at the filling station confirmed Kabiruzzaman has no property in Rajshahi and expressed shock at the brothers’ arrests. The two brothers, along with two others—Ibrahim Hossain Munna, convener of the Dhaka metropolitan branch of the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement, and Abdur Razzak bin Sulaiman (alias Riyad), a member of the central committee of the Democratic Students’ Parliament—were arrested on Saturday night. All four have been expelled from their respective organizations following the arrests. The court has remanded them for seven days.