Members of Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) arrested a warranted fugitive war criminal from Sreepur upazila of Gazipur district on Wednesday.

The arrested was identified as Md Shahar Ali, 76, hailed from Phulpur upazila of Mymensingh district.

RAB-2 senior assistant director Md Fazlul Haque confirmed the information in a press release on Friday morning.

He was arrested following a secret operation at Sreepur upazila in Gazipur on Wednesday, he said.

RAB said that during the Great Liberation War of 1971, Md. Shabar Ali and other Razakars were directly involved in various crimes against humanity including kidnapping, rape, brutal torture, arson, brutal murders.

On the night of May 23 in 1971, 15 to 16 armed Razakars including Shahar Ali and 5 to 6 Pakistani Army tortured the freedom-loving people of Maishakanda village of Phulpur police station and the people of the local minority community, looted and set fire to 10 to 12 houses.

In addition, on August 4, 1971, 20 to 25 armed Razakars, including Md Shahar Ali, led by the chairman of Phulpur Thana Peace Committee and Razakar Rajab Ali Fakir, looted the houses of the freedom-loving innocent people in East Bakhai and West Bakhai areas of Phulpur Thana and took 9 to 10 people to the Sharchapur Ghat of Kangsh River and shot them dead, RAB said.

On August 6, 2017, a case was filed at the International Criminal Tribunal.

On March 19, 2019 The International Criminal Tribunal issued an arrest warrant against Md Shahar Ali, RAB added.

He has been hiding in various parts of the country under disguise.