Top gangster shot dead in New Market

A top‑listed criminal was shot dead in front of Dhaka University’s Shaheed Shahnewaz Hall in the New Market area around 8:00pm last night.

Khandokar Noyeem Ahmed Titon, 59, was released on bail in August 2024 after serving a long prison term. His name appeared second on the government’s list of 23 top criminals in 2001. Investigators believe he was killed by his rivals in the underworld.

He was the brother‑in‑law of another notorious gangster, Sanjidul Islam Emon. Law enforcement sources said Emon himself is suspected of involvement. Emon was also suspected of orchestrating the daylight shooting of Tariq Saif Mamun, another top criminal, in Old Dhaka on November 10 last year.

Police said Titon was long involved in extortion and tender manipulation, among other criminal activities in Rayerbazar and Mohammadpur. Though out on bail, he had been absconding without appearing before court.

Masud Alam, deputy commissioner of DMP’s Ramna Division, said police are trying to track down the killers. “Footage from CCTV cameras in surrounding areas is being collected, and eyewitnesses are being interviewed.”

Witnesses said two men on a motorcycle carried out the attack. One assailant fired multiple rounds at Titon, finally shooting him in the head before fleeing through an alley near the BGB gate. Locals chased them, but the attackers fired at the crowd to escape. Both wore hats and masks.

Pedestrians and students rushed Titon to Dhaka Medical College Hospital, where doctors pronounced him dead at 8:30pm. Inspector Md Faruk of the DMCH police outpost said the body bore multiple bullet wounds.

Police sources said Titon entered the underworld in the early 1990s, first as a local gang member before expanding his reach. He orchestrated multiple killings and built a powerful arms‑trading network. He faced several murder cases, including the high‑profile killing of businessman Babar Elahi.

Law enforcers arrested him in the Dhaka cantonment area in 2004. A decade later, he was sentenced to death in the Babar Elahi case. In August 2024, he walked out on bail from Kashimpur High Security Central Jail.