A suspected drug peddler was killed and two others were injured in a ‘gunfight’ with the Rapid Action Battalion in the city’s Malibagh Rail Gate area on Sunday morning.
The deceased was identified as Iqbal Hossain, 40. Further details about him could not be known yet.
Tipped off that a consignment of Yaba would arrive in Dhaka from Cox’s Bazar by a bus, a RAB team took position in the area, said police super Mohiuddin Faruki, company commander of RAB-2.
When the drug dealers were shifting Yaba pills to a private car, the elite force members challenged them around 7:10am, he said.
At that point, the miscreants opened fire at RAB members, forcing them to fire back in self-defence, triggering a gunfight, Mohiuddin said.
At one stage, three drug peddlers were caught in the line of fire and suffered wounds, he said.
They were taken to Dhaka Medical College Hospital where doctors declared Iqbal dead, the RAB official said, adding that two others were undergoing treatment at the hospital.
Two RAB members-assistant sub-inspector Foyez and constable Hasan-also suffered wounds in the incident, he said, claiming that they recovered 1 lakh Yaba pills, Tk 1.89 lakh in cash, cheques for Tk 5 crore, a pistol loaded with four bullets and 12 handsets.
