DMP monitors fuel sales to prevent vehicle arson

Police have arrested several people, including members of a banned organisation and its affiliated groups, in connection with crude bomb explosions and bus arson at different locations in Dhaka, a senior police official said on Sunday.

Md Akter Hossain, deputy commissioner of the Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) Media and Public Relations Division, said a group was suspected of carrying out the incidents to create panic and engage in sabotage.

“We have observed that a group is involved in these activities with the intention of sabotage and creating panic among people,” he told reporters at the DMP Media Centre on Mintoo Road.

He said police were closely monitoring the situation and investigating each incident.
Intelligence surveillance was continuing, while police operations were being conducted in coordination with information gathered through investigations by intelligence agencies, Akter added.

The DMP had taken necessary measures to ensure public safety, he said, noting that mobile patrols and picket duties were being maintained alongside intelligence surveillance.

Asked about the sources of materials used to make crude bombs and those involved in their production, Akter said the Detective Branch (DB) had previously arrested people involved in such activities and recovered explosive substances.

Regarding the collection of fuel used in vehicle arson and whether petrol pump owners had been alerted, he said police were monitoring the purchase and sale of different substances to detect transactions suspected of being linked to sabotage.

Police were also examining CCTV footage to identify people collecting inflammable materials for carrying out such attacks, he added.