Ridesharing biker Shahanaj Akhter Putul was ecstatic after the police returned her stolen bike, the sole source of her income that supports her family.
Overwhelmed with happiness at being able to continue a job she loved, Shahnaj said that the Bangladesh police had “accomplished the impossible” by recovering the bike so soon.
“I had no idea the police could accomplish so much if they want to,” an emotional Shahanaj said on Wednesday (Jan 16), adding that it was stuff she witnessed only on crime shows on TV.
Shahanaj, who is the sole bread-winner of her family of two little girls, went viral after her story of being a female ridesharing biker was posted on social media platform Facebook.
On Tuesday (Jan 15), her bike was stolen a man named Zubaidul Islam Johny from the capital’s Manik Miah Avenue.
According to the case dossier, Johny introduced himself as a driver of ridesharing service Pathao and promised to help her get a full-time job.
She met him on Tuesday and after driving around the city for a while stopped to have a cup of tea with him.
Johny wanted to test-ride the scooter and she complied after which he took off with the bike.
The news of the theft went viral soon enough, and police arrested him on Wednesday along with the bike from Narayanganj.
Expressing her gratitude to the police for recovering her bike, Shahanaj said that many had asked her to take on a different job after the bike was stolen, but she was adamant because she liked this job.
Meanwhile, Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP), Tejgaon branch Deputy Commissioner (DC) Biplob Kumar Sarker handed her Tk 10,000 on behalf of the department, knowing that she hadn’t had any income for two days.
“We have sent Jubaidul Islam Johny to court and will ask to remand him,” said Sarker adding that he will be questioned once the remand is granted.
Shahanaj’s struggle as a single mother of two daughters came to limelight when online activist Rafiuzzaman Sifat shared it on Facebook. The post has been shared nearly 10,000 times, with many applauding her courage and determination.