Religious Affairs Minister Md Faridul Haque Khan's iPhone 15 Pro Max, which had been stolen from Jamalpur, has been recovered from Malaysia.
Bangladesh Police has arrested nine people, including the mastermind behind the theft ring, said Detective Branch (DB) chief Police Mohammad Harun-or-Rashid during a press conference on Wednesday afternoon at DB office.
The mobile phone was stolen on 30 April.
Later, the minister's personal assistant Ismail Hossain filed a general diary at Jamalpur's Islampur Police Station.
According to the general diary, Religious Affairs Minister Md Faridul Haque attended a janaza at Mosharrafganj under Islampur municipality on April 30. During the event, his mobile phone, along with its SIM card, disappeared from his panjabi pocket.
Subsequently, the Cyber Crime and Investigation (North) unit of the Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DB) began efforts to recover the state minister's mobile phone.
After an extensive investigation, the iPhone was successfully recovered from Malaysia, said Harun-or-Rashid.
The arrestees are Md Jakir Hossain, Masud Sharif, Md Ziaul Molla Zia, Rajib Khan Munna, Md Al Amin Mia, Md Anwar Hossain alias Sohel, Md Rasel, Md Khokon Ali and Md Billal Hossain.
Police also recovered a huge quantity of stolen mobile handsets from them.
The DB chief stated that the gang operates in 80 groups across the country, with Jakir leading these groups.
How the handset reached Malaysia
Munna stole the mobile phone from Md Faridul Haque Khan's pocket at the funeral prayer in Jamalpur.
He then passed it to Rasel, who sold it to Borhan for Tk50,000. Borhan subsequently handed the mobile phone to a person named Kamruzzaman Hiru, who sent it to Malaysia.
After the arrest of the gang members, the mobile was sent back from Malaysia, said the DB chief.
According to police, this gang specifically targets bureaucrats, high-ranking government officials, and politicians.
They take advantage of social events or political meetings to steal valuable items.
During the initial interrogation, the gang informed the detective police that they had stolen at least 10,000 mobile phones.
Most of these phones were sent to Riazuddin Market in Chattogram, from where they were smuggled abroad.
Several market names in Dhaka have also been identified as part of their operation, Harun-or-Rashid said, adding that authorities are working against these networks.
