309 unauthorized mobile phones seized from Pallabi, 7 arrested

The inspection team of Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) and members of RAB-4 have conducted an operation in a shopping mall in Pallabi of the capital on the charge of selling unauthorized mobile phones of various well-known and expensive brands. During this time 07 (seven) members of the smuggling ring were arrested along with 309 illegal / unauthorized / stolen mobile phones. Among the seized mobile phones are Vivo brand-38, Oppo brand-63, Samsung brand-09, Redmi brand-36, Sony Xperia brand-02, iPhone-37, HTC brand-04, Symphony brand-1, LG brand-03, Nokia brand-02, Realme brand-07, Poco brand-01, Norjo brand-01, a total of 309 unregistered mobile phones. The arrested persons are Mahmudul Hasan Masud (28) of Bahmanbaria District, Md. Jisan (25) of Dhaka District, Md. Russel (26) of Rangamati District, Biplob Hossain (32) of Chandpur District, Md. Raihan (23), Md. Rocky (19) and Md. Hasibul Islam (21)of  Dhaka District. Legal action is being taken against the arrested persons under Section 413/34 of the Penal Code and intelligence surveillance is on to arrest other accomplices. During the operation, the BTRC delegation verified the IMEI number through their own software and declared 309 mobile phones unregistered and with their help RAB seized the mobile phones. The detainees said during the preliminary interrogation that they had smuggled the mobile phones into the country from different countries for the last few years and sold it to the public by changing the IMEI number by evading the tax prescribed by the government. Since law enforcement cannot easily identify criminals who commit crimes using such unregistered mobile phones, criminals carry out various types of criminal activities with these. The BTRC will continue its campaign to stop the illegal import, marketing, sale and distribution of mobile phones and other wireless devices. Therefore, the public has been requested to verify the legitimacy of the purchase of mobile phones. The BTRC has also specially requested all concerned to refrain from buying and selling any type of illegal and unauthorized mobile phones.