Human Trafficker shot dead in Bangladesh

Dhaka: A Rohingya man suspected for his role in trafficking people has been shot dead in Bangladesh today, police said.

The 30-year-old man died in an early morning when a gunfight erupted between two groups of human traffickers in Teknaf near Bangladesh’s border with Myanmar.

Teknaf is home to 32,000 registered Rohingya refugees who have been sheltered in two camps. Besides, an estimated 200,000 to 300,000 Rohingya refugees also live in the area.

“He was charged with at least three human trafficking offences and his name was in the list of human traffickers prepared by the home ministry,” local police chief Ataur Rahman said, referring to the dead suspect, who he identified only as Amanullah.

However, a Rohingya community leader in the Nayapara refugee camp said Amanullah, a resident of the camp, had been shot dead while in police custody.

“Police arrested him at 4pm Sunday and this morning they shot him dead in cold blood near a road,” the leader said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Every year thousands of Bangladeshi economic migrants and Rohingya from Myanmar attempt perilous boat journeys organised by people-smugglers, mostly to Malaysia and Thailand.