An auto-rickshaw driver has been taken into police custody following the seizure of 144 bottles of locally distilled liquor during a routine traffic inspection along Pragati Sarani in Gulshan, Dhaka. A second individual present in the vehicle managed to evade authorities and fled the scene.
The arrested driver has been identified as 47-year-old Md Shofiqul Islam, hailing from Itna Upazila in Kishoreganj district.
The interception took place at approximately 9:30 am on Saturday, 10 October, when officers stationed at a regular checkpoint managed by the Badda Zone Traffic Police flagged down a suspicious CNG-run auto-rickshaw. Delwar Hossain, Traffic Inspector for the Badda Zone, stated that the vehicle was signaled to pull over as part of standard stop-and-search procedures. Upon halting, a passenger swiftly exited the auto-rickshaw and made a run for it, disappearing into the surrounding area before officers could intervene.
The sudden escape raised immediate suspicion among the traffic personnel, prompting a comprehensive search of the vehicle. Officers subsequently discovered three large gunny sacks stashed inside the auto-rickshaw, which contained 144 bottles of untaxed local spirits, commonly referred to as ‘Bangla মদ’. The driver was immediately detained at the site alongside the vehicle and the contraband.
Ismail Hossain, Inspector (Investigation) at Gulshan Police Station, confirmed the details of the seizure and clarified the legal procedure following the operation. Under prevailing regulations, traffic police officers are not legally empowered to prepare an official search and seizure list. Consequently, officers from the Gulshan Police Station were called in to execute the formal inventory documentation and take charge of both the suspect and the confiscated items.
Legal proceedings were formally initiated shortly after the transfer. Uzzal Hossain, a Sub-Inspector at Gulshan Police Station, filed an official case as the primary complainant. Driver Shofiqul Islam has been formally recorded as arrested under the relevant narcotics control laws, and police are currently investigating the wider network behind the consignment to identify the absconding accomplice as well as the intended destination of the illegal spirits.
