BD Thai Food factory robbed for third time

BD Thai Food & Beverage, a company listed with the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE), reported that its factory was robbed recently for the third time in just over a year, with masked intruders making off with machinery and cash worth an estimated Tk 1.5 crore.

The DSE published a disclosure yesterday after the company submitted a letter detailing the latest incident, which occurred around 2:00am on February 10, 2026.

According to the letter, 30 to 40 unidentified masked robbers entered the company’s factory premises in Dhamrai, tied up and assaulted six to seven on-duty security guards, and looted various important machinery and materials from the factory before fleeing.

The company reported that the robbers stripped a 1,400 KVA substation of all its internal components, rendering it non-functional. They also stole ten high-capacity power motors, power cables from three generators, batteries, copper bars, ACB breakers, computers, four mobile phones from the guards, and Tk 1.5 lakh in cash.

In addition, glass panels were vandalised, cabinets and lockers broken open, and a private car damaged.

Speaking to The Daily Star yesterday, Rubina Hamid, chairman of BD Thai Food and sister of former health and family welfare minister Zahid Maleque, said the robbers hauled away the machinery using two trucks.

She added that on Tuesday, individuals were also spotted cutting and removing soil from the site using an excavator, but they stopped after police were alerted.

In the letter to DSE, the company said the factory had previously been robbed in December 2024 and January 2025. Despite police complaints being filed on both occasions, no suspects were arrested and no stolen goods recovered.

Hamid claimed that police refused to register a case after the first robbery, but accepted one this time.

The company’s Accounts and Admin Officer Tariful Islam filed a First Information Report at Dhamrai Police Station on February 11.

Inspector (Investigation) Md Shahidul Islam of Dhamrai Police Station confirmed that a case has been filed and is currently under investigation.

“So far, no one has been detained in connection with the incident,” he told The Daily Star.

The company, in its letter, said apart from stolen equipment and cash, the factory has suffered extensive losses in product manufacturing and marketing operations as a result of the incident.

Asked how the company plans to recover from its losses, Hamid noted that while the factory carries fire insurance, there is no coverage for robbery.

“If such repeated robberies continue, it will be difficult to keep the factory operational,” she said. “Even so, we have arranged electricity through one line again, so that at least some operations can resume.”

Apart from Hamid, her son Ryan Hamid and her nephew Rahat Maleque are also on the company’s board.

BD Thai Food shares fell 0.57 percent to Tk 17.50 at the Dhaka Stock Exchange yesterday.