A man accused of instigating last December's arson attacks on The Daily Star and Prothom Alo has been released on bail.

The accused, Qari Muajbin Abdur Rahman, was released from jail on July 3 after securing bail, according to a post on his Facebook account yesterday.

On December 18 last year, coordinated attacks targeted Prothom Alo before moving to The Daily Star, where 29 journalists and employees were trapped inside as assailants vandalised property and set the office on fire.

According to court records, Muajbin, along with eight other suspects, was arrested on December 22 in connection with the attack on The Daily Star office. Later, he was also shown arrested in the case filed over the attack on the Prothom Alo office.

Investigators said Muajbin delivered instigating speeches that led to the attacks.

A court police officer said Muajbin was granted bail in the Prothom Alo attack case on June 7.

The Daily Star filed a case on December 22 last year against 350 to 400 unidentified people under the Penal Code, the Anti-Terrorism Act, the Special Powers Act and the Cyber Security Ordinance. The complaint estimated the damage at Tk 40 crore.

On the same day, Prothom Alo filed a case with Tejgaon Police Station against 400 to 500 unidentified people over the attack on its office in Dhaka's Karwan Bazar.

The case was filed under the Penal Code, the Anti-Terrorism Act, the Special Powers Act and the Cyber Security Ordinance.

According to the case statement, the value of Prothom Alo's looted property was estimated at Tk 2.50 crore, while damage caused by vandalism and arson amounted to around Tk 32 crore.

According to court records, 40 people have so far been arrested in the two cases.