Three men allegedly pretended to be Central Investigation Department (CID) agents and robbed a restaurant manager after claiming that there was a complaint that the food joint served alcohol illegally, a court heard.
Only one of the suspects, a 40-year-old Bangladeshi businessman, is standing trial at the High Criminal Court on charges of impersonating a police officer, assaulting the manager and stealing BD410 in cash during the incident in October last year.
The other two defendants have not yet been identified.
The alleged victim recounted being approached by the trio at his workplace; they claimed they were inspecting the restaurant after receiving a report that it sold alcohol without a licence.
“They barged into the restaurant and told me that they worked with the police,” the victim testified in court.
“I told them they were free to inspect the premises as we had nothing to hide and that we would co-operate fully with them.
“But instead of probing the restaurant, they insisted that they needed to search my personal accommodation, claiming I might be hiding a secret supply of alcohol there.”
According to court documents, the victim agreed to accompany the men to his flat, believing their claims to be legitimate. However, upon arriving at the accommodation, the men allegedly turned violent.
“The defendant pretending to be a police officer suddenly lunged at me, punching me in the face twice,” the victim claimed.
“The other two grabbed me from behind and restrained me. While I was unable to move, one of them went through my pockets and took BD410 in cash.”
The victim said though he attempted to resist, he was overpowered by the men who left him injured on the floor of his flat before fleeing the scene.
He then contacted the police to report the incident and was informed by officers that no complaint had been registered against the restaurant.
“Officers told me that no inspection of the premises had been ordered and that I had been assaulted and robbed by conmen,” he said.
“I immediately filed a police report to recover the stolen money as soon as possible.”
In Public Prosecution hearings, the man also stated that the defendant and his alleged accomplices at first stated they were members of the CID, and were in search of a person who owed them BD92.
He stated that the trio questioned whether he had any knowledge of this person or their money, before demanding to carry out an inspection.
The GDN earlier reported that authorities reviewed security camera footage from the restaurant, and through that managed to identify and arrest the Bangladeshi national, who denied the charges in court.
The video evidence reportedly showed three men escorting the victim out of the premises and into a dimly-lit alleyway leading to his accommodation.
However, the other two men involved in the alleged crime remain unidentified and their whereabouts are still unknown. It is unclear whether or not they are in the country.
Judges set January 14 as the date for a verdict to be issued in the case.
zainab@gdnmedia.bh
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