The country’s two most important prisons—Dhaka Central Jail in Keraniganj and the Kashimpur High-Security Central Jail in Gazipur—house the highest number of influential and notorious inmates. These facilities are supposed to maintain the strictest security and surveillance. Yet many inmates in these two prisons illegally use mobile phones to control drug trafficking, terrorism, and extortion operations outside. Some even issue political instructions. A number of hardened criminals had even planned to escape by breaking out of the prison.

These findings appear in a report by the Special Branch (SB) of police, which has also been submitted to the relevant departments of the interim government.

According to information in the SB report, submitted a few months ago, inmates of these two key prisons are illegally using at least 360 mobile numbers. Among them, 79 numbers are being used inside Dhaka Central Jail and 281 numbers inside Kashimpur High-Security Central Jail. Collusion by a section of corrupt prison staff has turned prisons into safe bases for operating phone-driven crime and instability.

From January to 16 August this year, the SB conducted digital surveillance on Dhaka Central Jail (Keraniganj) and Kashimpur High-Security Central Jail. Data was collected from the areas covered by the Base Transceiver Stations (mobile phone towers) connected to and surrounding the prisons.