Abducted 4 days ago, Cox’s Bazar farmers yet to be rescued

Four days after kidnappers abducted three farmers for ransom, law enforcers have not been able to rescue any of them in Cox's Bazar's Teknaf upazila.

Kidnappers, who the locals claim are of Rohingya origin, shot one of the three hostages -- Akhtar Ullah, 24 -- on Friday after their ransom was not paid.

They had initially demanded Tk 3 lakh for the three. Later, they increased the demand to Tk 20 lakh for the two remaining hostages -- Md Shahed, 25, and Md Idris, 27.

Eight separate police teams are conducting drives throughout the area in Howaikyang union under Teknaf and have recovered evidence suggesting presence of criminals in the area, Pradeep Kumar Das, officer-in-charge of Teknaf Police Station, told our Cox's Bazar correspondent this noon.

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Kidnappers hold 3 men in Cox’s Bazar, demand Tk 3 lakh

Police will continue the drive until the farmers are rescued and the culprits arrested, OC Pradeep added.

Things have remained tense around Minabazar area of the union, where the farmers were kidnapped on Wednesday night.

On Friday, locals staged a demonstration in Minabazar on Cox's Bazar-Teknaf road protesting the killing of Akhtar Ullah and demanded authority's prompt measures.

The criminals had shot Akhtar Ullah early on Friday morning and left his body with a note near Putibunia Rohingya Camp No 22 in Howaikyang union in Teknaf around 5:00am.

The kidnappers then threatened the family of the two remaining farmers over phone that they would kill them within the next two days if Tk 20 lakh is not paid in ransom.

Locals said, the kidnappers, who they said were Rohingyas led by one Abdul Hakim, abducted six men who were working in a paddy field in Minabazar on Wednesday night.

The kidnappers later released three of them -- Abul Hashem, a farmer, and his two sons Reazuddin and Jamaluddin -- in exchange for rice and other food, and kept the three others for ransom.

Law enforcers conducted several drives in the region but have so far failed to nab Abdul Hakim and his cohorts.