A robbery incident has occurred at a business establishment in Bauphal upazila of Patuakhali. A gang of robbers have kidnapped the owner of the establishment, prominent businessman Shivanand Roy Banik alias Shibu Banik (72). The incident took place at 10:15 pm on Friday (January 3, 2025) at a merchant establishment named Kanu Priyabhandar in the Merchant Patti area of Kalaiya Bandar in the upazila. Bauphal police station OC Md. Kamal Hossain confirmed the incident.
The employees and relatives of the businessman said that according to the rules of the association, all businesses are closed after Friday prayers in the Merchant Patti area on Friday. So, Shivanand Roy Banik and his employees Shankar Das and Tapas were in the establishment at night to calculate the money collected from various retail markets and to pack the goods that arrived by truck today. At approximately 10:15 am, a group of robbers of about 7 to 8 people suddenly entered the establishment through the front door of the establishment. Before they could realize anything, the robbers broke the CCTV camera and took all three of them hostage at gunpoint. All the robbers in the group were teenagers and young adults. The robbers were approximately 17 to 25 years old. They were all wearing monkey hats. They took about 7.5 lakh taka hostage at the point of firearms and country-made weapons. Later, the robbers tied up the two employees and abducted businessman Shivanand Roy Banik through the back door of the establishment and took him to the river. The Algi River is behind Shivanand Roy Banik’s establishment. The robbers kidnapped businessman Shivanand Roy Banik in a trawler on that river and headed towards the Tentulia River.
Sanjit Roy Banik, brother of the kidnapped Shivanand Roy Banik, complained that the Kalaiya Naval Police Outpost is 200 meters away from their establishment. Neighboring traders said that such incidents have created fear and panic. People usually move here at 10 pm. The robbers have planned this robbery and kidnapping. The matter is worrying for the merchants of Manohari grocery store. After visiting the scene, Bauphal Police Station OC Md. Kamal Hossain said, we reached the spot as soon as we came to know about the incident. Since he was kidnapped and taken to the river, we are preparing for an operation in the river. Source-rtvonline.com
On January 6, 2025, the Daily Ittefaq published a report titled “Businessman rescued 2 days after kidnapping”. According to the report, police and RAB rescued businessman Shivanand Roy Banik alias Shibu Banik from Baufal 2 days (50 hours) after his kidnapping. He was rescued from the Kachua area of the upazila around 1:30 am on Sunday (January 5). After the rescue, Shivanand Roy Banik was taken to Baufal Health Complex for a health check-up. Later, he was taken to Baufal Police Station and handed over to his family members.
