Photo: BSS

CHATTOGRAM, March 10, 2026 (BSS) - Three cases have been filed with Sitakunda Police following the arrest of 22 alleged criminals and recovery of a large cache of illegal arms and ammunition during an eight-hour combing operation at Jungle Salimpur slum, an outskirt of Chattogram city under Sitakunda upazila.

Officials at a press conference today confirmed that the army-led operation, which involved 3,183 personnel from different law enforcement agencies, successfully dismantled a criminal hideout. Of the three cases, RAB-7 lodged one while the police registered two in connection with the arrests and seizure.

The recovered items included three locally and foreign-made pistols, 27 pipe guns, 30 pistol magazines, 57 pipe pieces used in arms manufacturing, 61 cartridges, and 1,113 rounds of bullets of various categories. In addition, 11 cocktails, a substantial quantity of arms-making materials, and pipe gun manufacturing machines were seized.

Lt Colonel Hafizur Rahman, chief of RAB-7, said that 7.62mm, 9mm, and .22-bore bullets were among the recovered ammunition. "These arms and ammunitions are usually used in areas near the Myanmar border. The organized criminal gang had turned this hilly slum into a terrorist hub, which was destroyed during yesterday's raid," he added.

DIG of Police, Chattogram Range, Ahsan Habib Palash said authorities are now considering establishing an investigation center in the area instead of a full-fledged police camp. "Setting up a police station or outpost is not our priority; our goal is to bring the entire area under administrative control," he said.

Chattogram Divisional Commissioner Dr. Md Ziauddin said that the implementation of pending government projects, including construction of a central jail, could be expedited once the area is brought under administrative control and law and order restored.

Two temporary police outposts have been established at the nearby S.M. Pilot High School and Ali Nagar High School, with 360 police personnel deployed to prevent the gang from regrouping.

The massive raid, described as the biggest of its kind in recent times, was led by Ctg Range DIG Ahsan Habib Palash, with Additional DIG Md Nazmul Haque and District Police Superintendent Md Nazir Ahmed Khan supervising field operations. Three helicopters, 15 APCs, three dog squads, and 12 drones were used during the operation.

Jungle Salimpur, a hilly and difficult-to-access area on the outskirts of Chattogram, had long been a hub for criminal activity, including killings, arms, and drug trafficking. The 3,100-acre area houses more than 30,000 residents in an illegally developed settlement known as the "zone of terror."

On January 19, 2026, Deputy Assistant Director of RAB Abdul Motaleb Bhuiyan was killed during a previous raid when criminals opened indiscriminate fire on law enforcers, forcing them to abandon the operation.