'Mintu bahini' chief detained in massive Coast Guard raid in Moheshkhali

The Bangladesh Coast Guard has dismantled a remote firearms manufacturers in the hilly terrains of Moheshkhali Upazila, arresting the mastermind behind a notorious local crime syndicate along with a substantial cache of illegal weapons, ammunition, and manufacturing tools.

The detained kingpin, identified as 38-year-old Imam Hossain Mintu, is a resident of the Hoanak area within Moheshkhali. According to law enforcement records, Mintu is a highly dangerous fugitive who currently faces at least 15 pending criminal cases involving armed robbery, arms trafficking, and piracy.

Acting on precise intelligence reports indicating that an organized criminal gang was secretly manufacturing firearms to distribute across the country, the Coast Guard mobilized a large-scale joint task force. Around 6am, tactical teams from multiple regional stations—including Shahpori, Teknaf, Baharchhara, Inani, Cox's Bazar, and Moheshkhali—coordinated a sweep through the deep forests adjacent to Keruntali in the Hoanak Union on Friday.

During the raid on the syndicate’s hidden outpost, security forces uncovered five locally made single-barrel guns, nine homemade pistols, a magazine for a foreign pistol, 20 rounds of live bullets, 12 live cartridges, four blank cartridges, an additional traditional weapon, three liters of locally produced liquor, and various specialized machinery utilized for forging firearms.

Lieutenant Commander Sabbir Alam Sujon, the Media Officer at Coast Guard Headquarters, confirmed the operation during a press briefing on Friday afternoon. He emphasized that Mintu’s syndicate had long terrorized local fishermen, salt farmers, and tourists along the eastern coastal belt through piracy and extortion.

Coast Guard authorities stated that dismantling this operation strikes a severe blow to a primary source of illicit weaponry in the region. Legal proceedings against the arrested suspect are currently being finalized, while intelligence surveillance and active patrolling have been intensified across the coastal hills to tracking down the remaining fugitives of the gang.