The move came following the murder of student Zubair Ahmed by an Algerian citizen Abu Ubaidah Kadir. Shaikh Nazmul Alam, deputy commissioner said Kadir, who killed the teenager, has been staying illegally in the country for the last 14 year.
“We have conducted the drive as per a list of 350 foreigners living in the Uttara, Rampura and Gulshan areas [of the capital]”, said DC Nazmul. Apart from the Zubair murder, we have information about foreigners who are involved in currency forging and drug business,” he added.
Of the 31 foreigners arrested, he said 12 are from Nigeria, five from Uganda, four from Cameroon, three from The Gambia, two from Ivory Coast, one each from Senegal, Kenya, Togo, Mali and Mozambique.
Of the arrestees, two are women.
A Bangladeshi police spokesman, DC Krishna, said the Gambians and the other foreigners entered the country on student and tourist visas. He urged people not to rent out flats or houses to foreigners without properly checking their documents.
According to intelligence sources, nearly 80 thousand foreigners mostly from African and South East Asian nations have been living in the country illegally for years. Of them, some African and Thai nationals are involved in crimes like manufacturing fake currency, prostitution and drug dealing. Law enforcers in 2013 arrested at least 250 foreigners on charges of their involvement in such crimes.
A top official of the special branch of police (immigration) told the Dhaka Tribune that they have information that at least five to six thousands African nationals are now illegally staying in major cities of Bangladesh.
Police commissioner Monirul Islam, said: “We are not against any country or foreigners but we are getting cautious so that no one would ever dare involve themselves in criminal acts while staying in Bangladesh.”
The Bangladeshi police have already arraigned the arrested foreigners before the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Court. Six of them including the three Gambians and the Senegalese, have already been sent to jail.
Dhaka Tribune
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