Extortionists attack housing company office in Kuakata
Extortionists vandalise the office of Kuakata Beach Resort Ltd in Patuakhali and put up a signboard, claiming the ownership of the land yesterday after the owner of the housing company refused to pay them Tk 12 lakh. Photo: STAR
A gang of extortionists attacked a housing company office in Kuakata on Friday demanding Tk 12 lakh as illegal toll and withdrawal of the case filed earlier by the housing company. The gang, allegedly led by Sohel Howlader, ransacked the office of 'Kuakata Beach Resort Ltd' near the ecopark at about 10:00am. They also tore down the company's boundary wall and hung a signboard claiming that the land was owned by the gang leader. The same gang attacked the housing office on January 12 and ransacked it as the owner refused to pay Tk 5 lakh as toll, sources said. Locals and the company sources said, Wahiduzzaman, owner of Kuakata Beach Resort Ltd, bought 5.39 acres of land from one Rafiz Uddin and his family members including wife Phulnesa Begum, son Fazlul Haque and daughter Bilkis in 2006. "On Friday, about 20/25 gangsters led by Sohel came to my office and demanded Tk 12 lakh as illegal toll. When we refused to pay the amount, they ransacked the office," Wahiduzzaman told this correspondent. The gang also destroyed valuable documents and papers at the office during the attack, he said. They damaged a part of the boundary wall of the compound in the south and hung a signboard claiming the ownership of the land by Sohel Howlader and his wife Najmunnahar Molly, said Wahiduzzaman. The criminals also asked me to withdraw the case that I filed for a similar attack on January 12 and threatened me of dire consequences, he said. Contacted, Sohel Howlader said that he owns the land and that's whey he hung the signboard on the purchased land. The acting officer in-charge of Kuakata police section said they heard the matter 'but nobody filed any case or brought any allegation in this regard'.
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