Police suspect that a person is involved in the shooting incident targeting singer Asif Akbar’s private car. The man arrived in an auto-rickshaw in front of the Vishal Center in the capital’s Moghbazar early Saturday morning and opened fire before fleeing. However, his identity has not yet been identified.
The incident took place at around 4:55 am on Saturday (October 24). At the time of the incident, Asif Akbar was in his studio on the third floor of the Vishal Center. His driver was also not near the car at the time.
Ibne Mizan, Deputy Commissioner of Tejgaon Division of Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP), said that during the incident, a CNG-powered auto-rickshaw stopped in front of the Vishal Center. A man got out of it and opened fire at Asif Akbar’s car. He later got back into the auto-rickshaw and headed towards Malibagh.
The police officer said that the investigation will determine whether there was anyone else in the autorickshaw besides the attacker.
He said a round of gunfire was fired at the back seat of the car, along with the driver’s seat, shattering the car’s glass.
Asif received the news from the security guard
According to police, Asif Akbar went to his studio around 8 pm on Friday. Some of his friends were also there. They left around 3 am.
A security guard nearby heard the gunshots early Saturday morning and rushed to the scene. He saw bullet marks on the car and informed Asif Akbar. The singer then went down and checked the condition of the car and called the national emergency number 999.
Upon receiving the information, Hatirjheel police reached the spot and spoke to Asif Akbar. According to the police, he did not suspect anyone and did not report any complaint to the police at the spot.
Police are collecting CCTV footage
Deputy Commissioner Ibne Mizan said, “The police are working to investigate the incident. Efforts are underway to collect footage from nearby CCTV cameras. A footage has already been found, where only the feet of the suspect are seen. The investigation is being carried out based on the clues from that footage.”
The police also said that whether Asif Akbar has any conflict with anyone in his office, whether he has a legal firearm or has applied for a new weapon – these issues will also be investigated. In addition, the possibility of participating in the local elections in Comilla and whether there is any political conflict are also under investigation.
However, the police have not yet provided any confirmed information about the motive for the shooting or the identity of the attacker.