Manikganj District Correspondent Gopal Rajbanshi :
Police officers in Shibalaya, Manikganj, have arrested a 30-year-old man after seizing a substantial consignment of 4,000 Yaba tablets during a targeted late-night operation near Paturia Ferry Terminal. The suspect, identified as Md. Helal Uddin, was apprehended on Saturday night near Ghat No. 5. Authorities formally produced him before a Manikganj court on Sunday afternoon following the filing of a criminal case under the Narcotics Control Act.
Acting on precise intelligence regarding drug trafficking along the river corridor, a specialised team from Shibalaya Police Station established a surveillance post in the Dhutrabari area, situated just south of the Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA) toll plaza. Officers spotted Helal Uddin moving suspiciously around the perimeter of the ferry terminal. Upon detaining and searching him in the presence of local witnesses, law enforcement personnel discovered the contraband concealed within 20 specially designed blue polythene sachets hidden on his person.
The suspect hails from Sairakhali village within Fandiakhali Union, located in the Chakaria Upazila of Cox’s Bazar district. Preliminary police enquiries indicate that Helal Uddin was operating as a courier, transporting the illicit methamphetamine pills from the coastal border region towards urban distribution centres across the country. Investigators suspect he intended to cross the river using the public ferry network to bypass major highway checkpoints.
Confirming the arrest, Md. Aminul Islam, Officer-in-Charge of Shibalaya Police Station, stated that the operation succeeded due to actionable, timely intelligence. He confirmed that officers caught the suspect red-handed with the complete shipment of illicit drugs. Police subsequently registered a formal case against him under national drug control legislation before transferring him to judicial custody on Sunday afternoon.
Paturia Ferry Terminal serves as a vital transit gateway connecting twenty-one southwestern districts with the capital city. Owing to the dense daily volume of passenger transport and long-distance cargo traffic, smuggling syndicates frequently attempt to utilise this major bottleneck to move contraband originating near southern maritime borders. Consequently, Manikganj district police have intensified surveillance, increasing random searches and intelligence operations across ferry docks, bus terminals, and key transit corridors to disrupt illicit supply chains across the region.
