55 Indian phones seized in Kurigram

Police and BGB jointly conducted a raid against mobile phone smugglers at Asadmor in Tilai Union of Bhurungamari upazila.

The raid resulted in the arrest of Enamul Haque Antar, 26. Bhurungamari Police Station conducted the raid on Thursday night and arrested him along with the consignment of mobile phones.

Nageswari and Bhurungamari Circle Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Muntasir Mamun Moon confirmed the information on Friday morning.

Police said 55 Indian mobile phones were seized from a poultry shed at the arrested man’s house in BSC Para, Uttar Tilai. Enamul Haque Antar was arrested during the operation.

Upon receiving information about the smuggling operation, ASP Muntasir Mamun Moon and a BGB team led by Subedar Matiur Rahman, commander of Dhaldanga Camp under Kurigram-22 BGB, conducted a joint operation and seized the phones.

The team recovered 55 used Indian mobile phones of various brands, including iPhone, Motorola, Oppo, Redmi, Realme and Vivo. The seized phones are estimated to be worth Tk 1.3 lakh.

ASP Muntasir Mamun Moon said, “These mobile phones were seized in a well-planned joint operation with the assistance of the BGB.”

For a long time, smuggled Indian mobile phones had allegedly been sold openly at Asadmor in Tilai Union. Mobile phone traders from different parts of the country, including Rangpur and Dhaka, reportedly travelled there to purchase the handsets.

According to police, an India-Bangladesh smuggling ring had been bringing mobile phones stolen or snatched in India across the border and distributing them in Bangladesh. As a result, illegally imported and unregistered mobile phones were entering the domestic market.