482 Arrested in Dhaka During 24-Hour Police Drive

A total of 482 people were arrested in Dhaka during a 24-hour anti-crime operation conducted by the Dhaka Metropolitan Police, with 48 cases filed in connection with the drive.

Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police Niaz Mehedi disclosed the information on Monday, 10 August. He said the arrests were made during routine and targeted operations carried out across different police divisions of the capital.

According to the police, the highest number of arrests was recorded in the Mirpur division, where 114 people were detained. Motijheel followed with 87 arrests, while Tejgaon recorded 67 and Wari 64. Fifty people were arrested in Uttara, 34 in Ramna, 33 in Gulshan and 24 in Lalbagh. The Detective Branch arrested eight people, while one person was detained by the Counter Terrorism and Transnational Crime division.

The operation also resulted in the recovery of a range of suspected criminal and contraband items. Police seized Tk 290,000 in cash allegedly linked to drug sales, along with four music systems valued at approximately Tk 230,000, five mobile phones, one knife and one CNG-run vehicle.

Among the other items recovered were 157 SIM cards, three motorcycles, one pistol, one magazine, one revolver and six rounds of ammunition. Police also seized 12 sickles, a baseball bat, a traditional agricultural blade, a dagger and a cutter.

A substantial quantity of suspected narcotics was recovered during the operations. The seizures included 7,699 yaba tablets, 65.5 kilograms of cannabis, nine ampoules of injectable drugs and 22.5 litres of foreign liquor.

The arrests and seizures were made through operations conducted in different police station areas of the capital. Police said the recovered items had been taken into custody as evidence and that legal proceedings against the arrested individuals were under way.

The latest operation forms part of the metropolitan police’s continuing efforts to curb drug trafficking, the circulation of illegal firearms and other forms of criminal activity in Dhaka. The division-wise figures also indicate that police activity was spread across much of the capital rather than being confined to a particular locality.

Authorities are expected to present the arrested individuals before the appropriate courts as required under the law, while further investigation will determine the specific allegations and offences involved in each case.