Members of Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) arrested former Pekua Upazila Parishad Chairman and Upazila Jubo League president Jahangir Alam on early Sunday in connection with murder of Principal Arif, who was kidnapped and killed recently.
Commander of RAB-15 Lieutenant colonel HM Sazzad Hossain confirmed the matter in a press briefing on Sunday noon.
He said Arif had a land dispute with Jahangir, the former chairman of Pekua Upazila. Following this conflict, Jahangir devised a plan to kidnap and murder Arif after August 5.
Jahangir and the other arrestee, Rubel, provided this information during primary interrogation, as mentioned in the briefing.
HM Sazzad Hossain said through a two-week-long operation in Chattogram and Cox's Bazar, RAB was able to uncover the mystery of this murder and arrest Jahangir Alam, the main perpetrator and mastermind behind the crime.
After the primary interrogation, Jahangir Alam said he was directly involved in the kidnapping of Principal Arif, demanding a ransom of Tk 40 lakhs , the murder, and the disposal of the body in a pond. Further investigation and interrogation are ongoing against him.
Principal of Pekua Central School and College, Arif, was kidnapped on September 28. On the day of the incident, Arif left home around 5 PM for family reasons. When he did not return home by 9:30 PM, his wife Mehbuba Anwar Liju, called him. However, he did not answer the call. After searching at all the possible locations and not being able to find him, his wife filed a missing person report at the Pekua police station at 11:50 PM that night.
Fourteen days after the abduction, his body was found on October 11 wrapped in a sack in an abandoned pond near his home.
