Armed gang robs petrol pump linked to PM`s family

Armed robbers made off with Taka 1.21 crore belonging to a petrol pump business co-owned by Prime Minister Tarique Rahman's cousin in Dhaka's Uttara area, police confirmed, with investigators reporting progress in the case even as no arrests have been made two days after the heist.

The robbery took place on Sunday morning as employees of DL Petrol Pump, co-owned by Tasin Akter Haque Del -- youngest son of former MP and minister Khurshid Jahan Haque and nephew of late former prime minister Khaleda Zia -- were transporting cash to a bank in Uttara. A gang riding three motorcycles blocked the vehicle's path near the southern side of RAB-1 Battalion headquarters, rammed it, and fled with the cash bag after threatening staff with sharp weapons. The unusually large sum reflected the pump's typical daily turnover of Taka 45-50 lakh combined with the accumulated takings from the preceding Friday and Saturday, when banks remain closed.

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Airport Police Station's officer-in-charge, Kamrul Hasan, said footage from at least 50 CCTV cameras in the vicinity has been collected and analysed, though the motorcycles' number plates could not be clearly identified; a case has been filed against unnamed suspects at the request of the pump's manager. Police maintain the investigation has advanced significantly and that efforts to identify and apprehend those responsible are continuing.