The arrestee sent the email to frame an individual from whom he took Tk180,000, falsely promising to arrange an Australian visa
During a press briefing yesterday, DMP Deputy Commissioner (media) Masudur Rahman confirmed that CTTC had arrested Towsif Hossain Simanto, 28, from his residence in Dhaka’s Banasree on Thursday evening.
On Friday, a Dhaka court granted a three-day remand for him, after he was produced before the court.
On Tuesday, Towsif had sent an email to the Australian High Commission, attempting to extort Tk500,000 from them and threatening to bomb the commission if they failed to make the payment.
At the briefing, Masudur Rahman said: “Towsif, who is originally from Tangail, was arrested by a team of CTTC from his home and a laptop, router and mobile phone were recovered from his possession during the drive.
“In the primary interrogation, Towsif admitted to sending the email to frame an individual named Nurul Huq Munna, from whom he had taken Tk180,000 a few days back with the promise that he would make the arrangements for an Australian visa for Nurul.
“But recently, when Nurul realised that Towsif was a fraud, he demanded his money back and started to pressurise him [Towsif].
“Towsif then devised a plan to frame Nurul for militancy and extortion. He used Nurul’s bank account and mobile phone number on the emails he sent to the Australian High Commission and Jaago Foundation, threatening to bomb their offices in Dhaka.”
The deputy commissioner further said apart from managing a Facebook page that claimed to send people to Australia, Towsif was also involved in other fraudulent activities.
DC Masudur Rahman also said: “Even though the threat to the Australian High Commission was not real, the security arrangements at the commission will remain in place.”
