TURA: With the exit of the GNLA from the jungles of Garo Hills following the killing of its chief Sohan Shira and the surrender of its cadres, armed gangs are slowly trying to take over the vacuum by procuring illegal arms and indulging in extortion and kidnapping.
The killing of a kidnapper in a gun battle with police in South Garo Hills and the subsequent rescue of two abducted traders on Wednesday afternoon reveal that criminals are beginning to raise their ugly head to make a quick buck by targeting traders and businessmen.
South Garo Hills police raided a jungle hideout of one such group which had abducted two traders, Amanur Rohman (39) of Chibinang Bosibanda under Phulbari police station and Kutubuddin Boktiar (33) of Gomaijora Phulbari, leading to the firefight.
The two petty traders had been taken away at gunpoint from Nagadipu area of Nangalbibra.
The gang was traced to a place called Komilla Bagan in Nangalbibra.
When police were approaching the hideout at around 3 PM they were fired upon by the criminals who tried to engage the security forces in a firefight.
In the brief exchange of gunfire one of the gang members was shot dead and the rest of the group fled leaving behind their two captives who were rescued by the police. The body of the fallen kidnapper was also retrieved but remained unidentified.
In their hurry to escape the criminals left behind a 9 mm pistol with a magazine along with 15 rounds of AK-47 ammunition and four dummy AKs shaped out of wood.
During the height of the previous ANVC and GNLA militancy era criminal gangs were prime targets of the militants who executed them in cold blood to avoid sharing space with them in the battle for supremacy.
Several dozen suspected criminals, particularly extortionists who used the name of the outfit to demand money, were ticked off by the militant organization which dispatched its execution squads to target them during the militancy era in Garo Hills spanning close to two decades.