Brahmanbaria: A court in Brahmanbaria has sentenced two individuals, who identified themselves as journalists, to five years’ imprisonment in an extortion case. The convicts, SM Ali Azam and Ashiqur Rahman Roni, received the verdict from Judge Masud Parvez of the Brahmanbaria Additional District and Sessions Judge Court-2. They were present in the courtroom during the announcement and were subsequently sent to jail.
According to United News of Bangladesh, the case statement reveals that on September 14, 2021, SM Ali Azam and Ashiqur Rahman Roni visited Sharifpur East Government Primary School in Ashuganj upazila, claiming to be journalists. They reportedly demanded access to various bills, vouchers, and official documents of the school. When the headmaster informed them that such records are managed by relevant authorities, they allegedly became angry and threatened to publish false reports against the teachers unless Tk 20,000 was paid as extortion. The two also reportedly misbehaved with staff members.
During the incident, local residents and teachers managed to detain SM Ali Azam, while Roni escaped on a motorcycle. The detained suspect was later handed over to police on instructions from the Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO). Following this, headmaster Md Habibur Rahman filed a case with Ashuganj Police Station under sections 419, 385, and 506 of the Penal Code. Police subsequently submitted a charge sheet after conducting an investigation.
After hearing witnesses and arguments, the court delivered the verdict. Plaintiff’s lawyer Syed Tafsir Ahmed Tanvir stated that the convicts had been involved in extortion at different institutions by posing as journalists, and the verdict was based on evidence. Ashuganj Press Club President Selim Parvez commented that journalism is a responsible profession, emphasizing that those convicted were not mainstream journalists. He added that they misused press identity cards and social media pages to deceive people.