Extortion row sparks fresh shooting at businessman’s residence
Staff Reporter :
Armed assailants opened fire on the residence of a leading businessman in Chattogram early Saturday, triggering panic in the neighbourhood and raising fresh concerns over extortion networks operating in the port city.
The house, located in the Chandanpura area, belongs to Smart Group Chairman Mostafizur Rahman. It had already been under police protection following a similar attack on January 2.
According to police and the businessman, the latest shooting took place around 6:30am, shortly after dawn prayers. Masked gunmen allegedly linked to fugitive crime figure Sazzad Ali carried out the attack after failing to extort a large sum of money from him.
Mostafizur told reporters that Sazzad, currently believed to be abroad, had been demanding extortion payments for a prolonged period.
“He first demanded Tk10 crore and later reduced it to Tk5 crore. When I refused, my house was attacked in January,” he said. About 20 days ago, he added, he received a WhatsApp message from Sazzad warning him to “wait and see.”
Describing Saturday’s incident, the businessman said the attackers began firing from behind the house while the family was preparing to return to sleep.
“They fired six to seven rounds,” he said, adding that the assailants were armed with pistols, a Chinese rifle and other sophisticated weapons. A security guard alerted the five to six police personnel stationed at the residence. Officers moved to the second floor and prepared to retaliate, but the attackers fled before any exchange of fire occurred.
Questioned about filing a case, Mostafizur expressed frustration. “What will happen by filing a case? Police were already here, yet the shooting happened,” he said.
Police said CCTV footage captured four masked individuals approaching the residence with firearms and opening fire in a coordinated manner. Preliminary analysis suggests that one attacker carried two pistols, while others were armed with a submachine gun, a Chinese rifle and a shotgun.
A team led by Deputy Commissioner (South) Hossain Kabir Bhuiyan of the Chattogram Metropolitan Police inspected the scene.
According to police, the attackers arrived using a private car and a motorcycle, leaving the vehicle at some distance before walking to the house. They fled within minutes of carrying out the shooting.
“We initially suspect the attack was carried out by associates of fugitive criminal Sazzad Ali Khan, also known as Boro Sazzad, in connection with extortion,” the police official said.
He added that two suspects believed to be Sazzad’s associates — Mohammad Raihan and Borhan — are under investigation, and drives are underway to arrest them. Sazzad Ali Khan, the son of contractor Abdul Gani from the Chalitaly area of Chattogram, emerged in the city’s criminal underworld following the 1999 killing of councillor Liaquat Ali Khan. Although he was acquitted due to lack of evidence, law enforcement agencies say his influence expanded afterward.
Police have also long linked him to the 2000 Bahaddarhat mass shooting, widely known as the “Eight Murder” case, in which eight people, including six activists of the then ruling student wing, were killed. He was later arrested with an AK-47 rifle but left the country in 2004 after securing bail. Authorities allege that he has since continued to control criminal operations from abroad.
Law enforcement officials claim Sazzad has maintained an extensive criminal network across Chattogram for more than two decades and is listed among Interpol’s most wanted fugitives under the name Sazzad Khan.
Police say his followers frequently resort to gun violence when extortion demands are not met. Residents in several police station areas — including Chandgaon, Bayezid Bostami, Panchlaish, Hathazari and Raozan — have long reported living under fear linked to the group’s activities.
Since August last year, according to police sources, associates of Sazzad have been implicated in at least 10 murder cases, including double killings, underscoring what investigators describe as a continuing pattern of organised criminal violence in the port city.
