Around 16 armed youths went to Global Colour Scan Limited at 32 Purana Paltan yesterday around 12:30pm and asked for its Chairman Mahbub Alam Mallik, said Executive Director of the firm Noor Alam Mallik. "The youths said they came to collect Tk 1 crore they had demanded over telephone a few days ago," Noor said.

Finding their demand was not met, the youths opened fire on computer accessories and destroyed eight monitors, one television and one CPU worth around Tk 25 lakh. They looted over Tk 8 lakh from the office and also snatched cash and cell phone sets from the customers present at the firm, the Global Colour Scan authorities claimed.

Before leaving the office, the extortionists threatened its employees to inform the owner to pay the toll within 72 hours or else their "condition will be like of the monitors".

Someone on behalf of Jisan, one of the top goons in the city, made a phone call to Mahbub demanding the toll, said Meer Aslam, director of the firm.

After yesterday's incident, an anonymous caller told Noor Alam, "We could be out of country but can still control things here," Noor told the press.

Paltan police said the owner of Global Colour Scan Mahbub filed a case accusing one Manzur Alam Manju. Mahbub and Manju had previous feud over contract work.

In another incident, thieves broke into 13 bookshops of Reza Ali Market at Banglabazar on Monday night and took away books and cash worth Tk 18 lakh.

Reza Ali, the owner of the market, filed a case in this connection and police arrested two guards of the market.