Rana at RAB headquarters

Mohammad Sohel Rana, the owner of multi-storey commercial block Rana Plaza which collapsed on Wednesday morning, has been brought to RAB headquarters at the capital’s Uttara.

He was presented before the media there while RAB officials briefed the reporters about his arrest on Sunday.
After his capture in Jessore earlier in the day, Rana was flown to old airport in Tejgaon by a helicopter at around 5pm.
Then he was driven to the elite force’s headquarters in a microbus.
Rana, whose ‘negligence’ allegedly caused the high-rise to collapse in Savar, leaving nearly 400 people dead, was arrested at Benapole earlier in the day.

Benapole Port Police Station Inspector Mijanur Rahman Khan told bdnews24.com Rana was detained at noon from the residence of clearing and forwarding trader Moniruzzaman Jeti at Benapole’s Ballfield.

Two bottles of Phensedyl were also found on him at the time. Rana was trying to flee to India, he said.

Jessore RAB commander Major Jahiduzzaman said Rana was hiding in the room of tenant Shah Alam Mithu at that house. They are distant relatives.

Mithu and Rana’s associate ‘Anil’ were also arrested there. Anil helped Rana to get to Benapole via Faridpur, Jahiduzzaman said.

RAB intelligence chief Lt Col Ziaul Ahsan led the raid that captured Rana.

Earlier on Sunday, State Minister for LGRD Jahangir Kabir Nanak, who is coordinating the rescue work at Savar, had confirmed the news of his arrest from Benapole bordering India.

“The Prime Minister had promised that those responsible will be brought to justice. She has kept her promise,” Nanak said.

Junior Home Minister Shamsul Haque Tuku was also present beside him when the announcements were made at Savar.

Tuku said, “The arrestees will be presecuted. And those who are yet to be arrested will be caught soon.”

Along with the ministers was local Awami League MP Talukdar Mohammad Towhid Jung Murad, who on Wednesday had aided Rana to flee from the collapse site at Savar after Rana had gone there to visit the scene.

The death toll from the worst building collapse in Bangladesh’s history has swelled to nearly 400.

Sohel Rana claims himself to be the Senior Joint Convenor of the ruling Awami League’s youth front – Juba League, but Awami League supremo Sheikh Hasina has dismissed his claim.

The Prime Minister herself also had ordered that Rana be arrested.

Rana reportedly had taken no heed of the cracks in the wall that surfaced in his building, housing at least five garment factories and many other offices, and dismissed it as ‘nothing serious’ on Tuesday.

The majority of the victims after the collapse on Wednesday were readymade garment workers, who were forced into work by the factory owners on Wednesday despite safety alerts raised by the Industrial Police the previous day.

Two cases have already been filed at the Savar Model Police Station, over what is being described as the worst industrial disaster in the history of Bangladesh, against Rana and the owners of the five garment factories located in the building.