Rapid Action Battalion yesterday arrested eight persons at a recruiting agency in the city's Malibagh area on charges of running the business illegally.

They seized around 500 passports from the agency.

Rab-2 personnel conducted a raid at the office of Golam Rabbi International at Malibagh and arrested Akhter Hossain, owner of the agency, and his seven staffers Mohammad Ali, Abdul Jalil, Harun-ur-Rashid, Abdur Rahim, Nazmul Hossain, Abu Sufian and Sohrab Hossain.

ASP Shahidul Islam of Rab-2 told The Daily Star that Akhter Hossain and his associates had been running the recruiting agency without license and government approval.

"The agency is also cheating with the people who paid money for going abroad", the ASP said.

Akhter Hossain admitted that he had been running the business since last two years without license. But he claimed that he had applied for license three months before.