Bangladesh arrests four suspects in Rohingya child’s kidnapping

DHAKA, Bangladesh (MNTV) — Bangladeshi authorities have arrested four suspects in the kidnapping of a six-year-old Rohingya boy who was abducted from a refugee camp in the country’s southeastern Cox’s Bazar district and held for ransom before being released.

The child, identified by police as Rahmat Ali, was kidnapped from Block E-4 of Camp 11 in Ukhiya on July 22, according to the Armed Police Battalion (APBn), which provides security in the Rohingya camps. The abductors allegedly demanded a ransom of 320,000 Bangladeshi taka ($2,600) from his family.

Police said the family paid the ransom, and the child was released unharmed on July 26. The family initially did not report the abduction because they had been threatened by the kidnappers.

The case came to the attention of authorities after a video of the child circulated on social media, prompting investigators from the APBn’s Moynarghona Police Camp to launch an investigation.

Police first arrested one suspect on July 27. Follow-up raids in Camp 18 on July 29 led to the arrest of three additional suspects, bringing the total number of people in custody to four.

All four suspects have been handed over to the local police and are being investigated under Bangladesh’s Women and Children Repression Prevention Act, with authorities saying additional arrests remain possible.

The kidnapping adds to a growing number of abductions reported inside the Rohingya refugee settlements in Cox’s Bazar, where criminal groups have increasingly targeted refugees for ransom. 

Humanitarian organizations and security officials have warned that worsening insecurity, armed gangs and limited economic opportunities have fueled organized criminal networks inside the camps, leaving many Rohingya families vulnerable despite living under heavy security.