A joint drive by the Bangladesh Army, Rapid Action Battalion (RAB-2), and Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) was conducted at Geneva Camp in the capital’s Mohammadpur area, leading to the arrest of 31 individuals. Law enforcers also seized a foreign-made pistol, ammunition, drugs, and locally made weapons during the overnight operation.
Army and RAB raid through the night
The joint team of the Bangladesh Army and RAB-2 carried out the operation from Thursday evening until 5am on Friday at Geneva Camp.
During the raid, an Italian-made 7.65mm pistol, a magazine, three rounds of live ammunition, and 1.5 kilograms of cannabis were recovered.
Four people were arrested — Abdullah Sarman, 31, Imran Hossain Alam, 28, Md Akash, 25, and Md Sohel, 28. Among them, Sohel is locally known as the manager of the infamous drug syndicate “Bunia Sohel gang.”
Gang rivalry leads to deadly clashes
Recently, violent clashes have erupted in Geneva Camp between three local gangs — Chua Selim, Picchi Raja, and Bunia Sohel — over territorial dominance.
On Tuesday, the army raided the hideout of the Picchi Raja group and arrested four individuals, seizing 32 live cocktails. Two days later, on the night of Thursday, a member of the Bunia Sohel group, Zahid, 20, was killed in a rival gang clash involving an explosion.
The large-scale joint operation that followed was launched in response to this incident.
Foreign and locally made weapons recovered
According to a press release issued by RAB-2, the joint forces discovered an abandoned cache of weapons and explosives during Thursday night’s operation.
The recovery included a foreign pistol, a magazine, three rounds of bullets, five samurai swords, ten large knives, two Chinese axes, 14 petrol bombs, ten cans of beer, 33 stainless steel pipes, and 30 helmets.
RAB officials said these weapons were stockpiled by the gangs for use in turf wars.
Additional arrests by local police
Meanwhile, Mohammadpur police station reported that, in a separate operation from Thursday evening to Friday morning, 23 more people were arrested from the Geneva Camp area on various criminal charges.
In total, 27 individuals were arrested from Geneva Camp in the army-RAB-police joint operation, while four others were detained from other parts of Mohammadpur.
All sent to court on Friday afternoon
All the detainees were produced before the court on Friday afternoon.
An officer from the Army’s 46 Independent Infantry Brigade said: “We are conducting regular anti-crime and anti-drug drives in Mohammadpur. The army, RAB, and police are working together to maintain law and order.”
Geneva Camp has long been a hotspot for gang violence, drug trafficking, and turf wars. Following Zahid’s murder, tensions have escalated, prompting intensified patrols and operations by the joint forces to restore security in the area.
