A suspended official of Uttara East Police Station and a former BGB member were sentenced to two years’ rigorous imprisonment for their attempt to loot 18,800 dollars (Tk 15 lakh) from the owner of a money exchange company.

Metropolitan Magistrate Debdas Chandra Adhikary of Speedy Trial Court-3 of Dhaka passed the order in presence of the two convicts -- suspended ASI Alamgir Hosen and an ex-BGB member Masum Billah.

The court also fined them Tk 5000 each, in default of which, they will have to serve one more month in jail.

Alamgir Hosen and Masum Billah were on bail but the court cancelled their bail and sent them to jail after the verdict.

The accused tried to snatch USD 18,800 from one Ilias Hosen, owner of a money exchange company, in front of Rajlokkhi Market of Uttara in Dhaka on April 4, 2017.

Ilias was waiting for a car in front of the market when the accused in association with three others picked him up in vehicle introducing themselves as detectives and tried to snatch the money that was with him.

Hearing screams, locals barred the vehicle and captured Masum, but the ASI along with his other associates managed to flee the scene.

Later, the investigators found out that Alamgir was the mastermind of the incident.

Investigating officer of the case Sub-Inspector Nur-E-Alam Siddique of Detective Branch of Police submitted the charge sheet against them in May of 2017. Later, the charges were framed in June of that year.

Accusation of criminal activities against cops have been frequently making headlines recently.

Yesterday, a Dhaka court placed two people, including an assistant sub-inspector of Shahbagh Police Station, on a three-day remand each, in a case filed over snatching 125 tola (apprx 1.25kg) of gold in Dhaka’s Shahbagh area.