A group of Myanmar’s Border Guard Police (BGP) has been robbing the local Rohingyas in northern Maungdaw for several months and accusing them with false charges for ransom, according to the reliable sources.

The gang of the money-extorting police consist of Corporal U Khin Hlaing and Staff Officers: U Zaw Zaw Aung and U Aung Kyaw Min from ‘Kyein Chaung (Boli Bazaar)’ Border Guard Police station.

Of them, U Zaw Zaw Aung preyed a Rohingya from Buthidaung Township around 9:30AM on December 7 as his latest victim of robbery.

“U Ata Ullah Mohammed Hussein, 35, is a local of ‘Chaung Taung’ village in northern Buthidaung. On December morning, he was coming to ‘Boli Bazaar’ village market to buy some food stuffs across the mountain valley. As he reached the junction nearby ‘Kyaik Chaung’ hamlet of ‘Londoong’ village tract in northern Maungdaw, three BGP personnel including Zaw Zaw Aung stopped him.

They accused him of illegally travelling to Bangladesh, beat him and robbed Kyat 50,000 out of Kyat 650,000 he had with him. The poor man robbed by the BGP had to go back crying,” said an eyewitness.

The BGP staff Zaw Zaw Aung and his colleagues arbitrarily arrest innocent Rohingyas from nearby villages and relase them only after extorting money. It has become their habit now. Now, he has become even worse. He robs and extorts more money from the Rohingyas giving excuse that he has to shares some money to his higher officer.

A local recounted what he says “I want to get promotions. That’s why I need to take more money for you and give them to the ‘G1,’ the Commander of the Station 14. He has become more barbaric now.