Oman has arrested Sumon Sikdar Musa, a key suspect in the murder of Motijheel Awami League leader Jahidul Islam Tipu and college student Samia Afnan Jamal Prity.
After the Interpol confirmed the arrest of Musa, Bangladesh started a move to bring him back, said Mohiul Islam, an additional inspector general, who heads the National Central Bureau at the Police Headquarters.
The police sought the Interpol’s help in arresting Musa after his name surfaced in the investigation of Tipu’s murder case. The NCB desk at the Police Headquarters is responsible for communications with the Interpol, reports bdnews24.com.
“Musa has been arrested in Oman. We are contacting Oman authorities to bring him back. We are also planning to send a police team. We hope to get a positive result soon,” Islam said.
Tipu, 55, was shot dead in the capital’s Shahjahanpur on Mar 24. A 22-year-old bystander, Prity, also died in the attack when she was hit by a stray bullet.
Following his death, Tipu’s wife Ward Councillor Farhana Islam Dolly filed a case but without naming anyone.
The detective police arrested a suspect, Masum Mohammad Akash, in Bogura on Mar 26 and said he shot Tipu. Another suspect, Arfan Ullah Damal, was arrested in Kamalapur.
After the arrest of Musa's brother Saleh Sikdar, Motijheel ward No. 10 Awami League General Secretary Omar Farook and two others on Apr 2, RAB said some local Awami League leaders took help from the underworld to kill Tipu.
They had a Tk 1.5 million fund to pay the underworld killers. Musa worked as a link between the underworld and the political circle. He also coordinated between the underworld in Dhaka and Dubai. He had left Dhaka for Dubai on Mar 12, around two weeks before the murder of Tipu. The murder of the Awami League leader was masterminded in Dubai.
According to the media reports, Musa went to Oman from Dubai last month.
AKM Hafiz Akter, additional commissioner of the Directive Branch, who is in charge of an investigation into the murder of Tipu and Prity, also said the process to repatriate Musa has begun.
"It'll be a major success for us if we can bring back Musa through the efforts of the Police Headquarters.”
