19 passport 'brokers' jailed

A mobile court backed by Rapid Action Battalion convicted 20 illegal passport brokers in the capital yesterday.
They were arrested near the Immigration and Passport office in Agargaon.
Of them, 19 were jailed for three months each and fined Tk 5,000 each while the other was fined Tk 10,000, said Executive Magistrate Anisur Rahman, who led the drive.
Some of the detainees admitted that they promised people to earn passport in short time and without any verification, Lt Col SM Masud Rana, commanding officer of Rab-2, told a press briefing on the spot. The illegal brokers took money from passport-seekers but sometimes deceived them by not giving passports, he said.