[🇧🇩] The fate of big guns/beneficiaries of Awami League after the student revolution

[Saif]

ACC sues Muhiuddin khan Alamgir, six others for money laundering

The Anti-Corruption Commission on Wednesday filed a case against seven people including former home minister of Awami League government, Muhiuddin Khan Alamgir, under the...

www.newagebd.net

ACC sues Muhiuddin khan Alamgir, six others for money laundering
Staff Correspondent 23 October, 2024, 17:25

The Anti-Corruption Commission on Wednesday filed a case against seven people including former home minister of Awami League government, Muhiuddin Khan Alamgir, under the Money Laundering Prevention Act.

The ACC on the day also decided to launch an inquiry against former finance minister AHM Mustafa Kamal over allegations of amassing illegal wealth through corruption.

Besides, the commission on the day decided to impose an international travel ban on two former AL lawmakers – Abdul Wadud (Chapainawabganj-3) and Mrinal Kanti Das (Munshiganj-3) – over allegations of corruption.

ACC deputy director Syed Ataul Kabir filed the case against Muhiuddin Khan Alamgir and six others with its integrated district office in Jamalpur, ACC director general (prevention) Md Aktar Hossain said.

The other accused in the case are Farmers Bank›s former director and RCL plastic industry proprietor Rashidul Haque Chisty, the bank’s Bakshiganj branch former manager Masudur Rahman, and its assistant officers – Fakhruzzaman, Mohammed Faruk, Md Hiron Rahman, and Md Ibrahim Khan.

According to the case statement, an account was opened at Bakshiganj branch of Farmers Bank [now Padma Bank PLC] in Jamalpur in the name of Sultana Matshya Khamar with fake documents and address during the tenure of MK Alamgir as chairman of the board of directors of the private bank.

The name of MK Alamgir, also a former lawmaker for Chandpur-1 constituency, was mentioned as the owner of the non-existing Sultana Matshya Khamar, it said.

The accused, in collusion with each other, conducted transactions of Tk 8.86 crore through the bank account between 2014 and 2017 to hide the source and ownership of the ill-gotten money, said the case statement.

ACC officials said that the commission decided to launch an inquiry against ex-finance minister AHM Mustafa Kamal and his family members over allegations of amassing illegal assets.

Referring to the allegations, they said, Kamal purchased lands in the Zoarsahara and Badda areas in Dhaka, and in Cumilla in his own name and deposited a huge amount of money in different banks and financial institutions, invested in shares, and invested Tk 20.48 crore in savings certificates.

They said that there were also allegations that ACC the former minister had investments in various companies, including Lotus Kamal Properties and Orbital Enterprises, and in land, plots, and apartments in different places in Dhaka and Cumilla in the name of his wife Kashmiri Kamal.

The officials said that there were deposits, investments in shares, and savings certificates in the name of the ex-minister’s wife in various banks and financial institutions amounting to Tk 38.87 crore.

They said that the ACC had received information that Mustafa Kamal and Kashmiri Kamal owned movable and immovable assets worth Tk 111.63 crore.

Apart from the assets, the ACC intelligence unit also found information that Kamal amassed assets worth hundreds of crores of taka at home and abroad, they said.

ACC deputy director [public relations] Aktarul Islam said that the commission decided to impose an international travel ban on former AL lawmakers Abdul Wadud and Mrinal Kanti Das and will submit petitions to a Dhaka court soon for imposing a travel ban on them.

Earlier, the commission decided to launch inquiries against the two former lawmakers over allegations of amassing illegal wealth.​

 

[Saif]

S Alam group official held while leaving country

An official of S Alam Group was detained while going to India through the Akhaura international immigration checkpost in Brahmanbaria this afternoon

www.thedailystar.net

S Alam group official held while leaving country

Photo: Collected

An official of S Alam Group was detained while going to India through the Akhaura international immigration checkpost in Brahmanbaria this afternoon.

The arrestee, Sujan Kanti Dey, 44, is a resident of Malghar village under Anwara Upazila of Chittagong, said Inspector Khairul Alam, in-charge of Akhaura Immigration Police Checkpost.

Sujan was arrested and handed over to Akhaura Police Station after being detained based on the requisition of Anwara Police Station, Khairul told The Daily Star.

As there is a regular case against him in Anwara Police Station, he will be shown arrested in that case, he added.

The arrestee, who works as a delivery officer at S Alam Cold Rolled Steels Limited, is accused of aiding in money laundering, said police.

He allegedly used to help the founder of S Alam Group with money laundering, police also said.​

 

[Saif]

July 15 attacks: Complaint filed with Shahbagh police against 420 BCL activists

A complaint was lodged with Shahbagh Police Station yesterday against 420 Chhatra League leaders and activists over the July 15 attacks on quota reform protesters at Dhaka University.

www.thedailystar.net

July 15 attacks: Complaint filed with Shahbagh police against 420 BCL activists

Protesters are attacked outside Shahidullah Hall, Dhaka University during quota reform movement on July 15, 2024. FILE PHOTO: RASHED SHUMON

A complaint was lodged with Shahbagh Police Station yesterday against 420 Chhatra League leaders and activists over the July 15 attacks on quota reform protesters at Dhaka University.

This follows a case filed on October 21 by members of the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement, which named 391 leaders and activists of BCL, Awami League, and Jubo League.

The complaint lodged yesterday contained 220 new names, including those of female leaders and activists of BCL, a pro-AL student body. It was filed by Arman Hossain, a coordinator of the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement.

After submitting the complaint, Arman, Umama Fatema, spokesperson for the movement, and coordinator Abdul Kader briefed reporters at the Shahbagh Police Station.

Police were yet to register the complaint as a case till filing of this report around 8:30pm.

Over a thousand unnamed activists of BCL, AL, and Jubo League were made accused in the case filed on October 21. The complaint lodged yesterday included "150-200" unnamed.

Yesterday's complaint named Saddam Hussain, president of BCL, Sheikh Wali Asif Enan, general secretary of the organisation, Mazharul Kabir Shayan, president of DU unit BCL, and Tanbir Hasan Shaikat, general secretary of the same unit.

On July 15, BCL activists attacked the protesters during the quota reform protests allegedly on the instructions of AL General Secretary Obaidul Quader.

"The complaint will be accepted as a case after scrutiny," said Shahabuddin Shaheen, officer-in-charge of Shahbagh Police Station.

In another development, detectives yesterday detained Khadiza Akter Urmi, president of Dhaka University's Shamsun Nahar Hall unit BCL, and its Surja Sen Hall unit Organising Secretary Moazzem H Rakib Sarker in Dhaka, said Talebur Rahman, deputy commissioner (media) of DMP.

On Thursday, police filed a case with Dhanmondi Police Station under the Anti-Terrorism Act, accusing 11 BCL leaders.

On October 23, the interim government banned BCL amid demands from the student movement against discrimination.​

 

[Saif]

Ex-minister engineer Mosharraf Hossain arrested

Detectives have arrested former housing and public works minister engineer Mosharraf Hossain from Bashundhara residential area in the capital

en.prothomalo.com

Ex-minister engineer Mosharraf Hossain arrested
UNB
Updated: 27 Oct 2024, 16: 40

Former housing and public works minister Mosharraf Hossain File photo

Detectives have detained former housing and public works minister engineer Mosharraf Hossain in Bashundhara residential area of Dhaka.

A team from the Detective Branch (DB) of the police held Mosharraf on Sunday, said deputy commissioner (media) of the Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) Talebur Rahman.

Mosharraf Hossain's detention was said to be in connection with a murder case that was filed with Paltan police station.

Mosharraf was elected as a member of parliament (MP) from the Chattogram-1 constituency seven times during the Awami League regime.

He held the position of housing and public works minister until January 2019 and also served as the minister of civil aviation and Tourism in 1996.​

 

[Saif]

Benazir sued in case filed over 2016 death in ‘crossfire’

A Joypurhat court has ordered legal action against nine individuals, in connection with the death of Shafinur Islam Shafin in a ‘crossfire’ incident while in RAB custody in 2016.

www.newagebd.net

Benazir sued in case filed over 2016 death in ‘crossfire’
United News of Bangladesh . Joypurhat 28 October, 2024, 21:09

Benazir Ahmed | Collected photo

A Joypurhat court has ordered legal action against nine individuals, in connection with the death of Shafinur Islam Shafin in a ‘crossfire’ incident while in RAB custody in 2016.

The family of the deceased is now claiming that Shafin’s was a victim of extrajudicial killing.

The accused include the then-director general of the Rapid Action Battalion, Benazir Ahmed, who retired as IGP, and then-Police Superintendent Molla Nazrul Islam.

The directive comes as part of a case filed eight years after the incident, seeking justice for the death.

The case was filed on Sunday by Nazrul Islam, father of the deceased, from Chokmohan village in Joypurhat’s Sadar upazila.

In total, the case involves 25 accused individuals, with the court initially focusing on the first nine named in the complaint.

Senior District and Sessions Judge Md Mojibur Rahman instructed that legal measures be taken against the nine, ordering the Police Superintendent to report back within 24 hours.

In addition to Benazir and Nazrul, the others against whom the court ordered action include Major Hasan Arafat of the Joypurhat AB camp, deputy assistant director Md Firoz Ali Khan, sub-inspector Enamul Haque, DAD Mahfuzar Rahman, SI Debashish Nandi of Sadar Police Station, RAB Naik Habibur Rahman and constable Mehedi Hasan.

According to the case details, the incident began on September 26, 2016, when members of the Joypurhat RAB camp arrested Shafinur Islam Shafin around 9:00pm from Uttara area in Dhaka.

Approximately one month later, on the night of October 25, at around 9:30pm, Shafin was reportedly shot and killed at an abandoned paddy field owned by Helal in Dadaura Nandigram, Joypurhat Sadar upazila.

Plaintiff's lawyer, Adv Mahfuzur Rahman Helal, informed the press that the court had acknowledged the allegations against the first nine accused and had ordered the Joypurhat SP to take legal action accordingly. The court mandated that the SP update it on the steps taken within a 24-hour period.

Speaking over the phone, SP Muhammad Abdul Wahab confirmed said, ‘Legal action is being taken as per the court’s directive.’​

 

[Saif]

Ex-DMP boss Golam Faruk under ACC scanner

The Anti-Corruption Commission on Monday decided to launch an inquiry against former Dhaka Metropolitan Police commissioner and additional inspector general of police Khandaker Golam Faruk over allegations of amassing illegal wealth worth Tk 3,000 crore...

www.newagebd.net

Ex-DMP boss Golam Faruk under ACC scanner
Staff Correspondent 29 October, 2024, 00:12

The Anti-Corruption Commission on Monday decided to launch an inquiry against former Dhaka Metropolitan Police commissioner and additional inspector general of police Khandaker Golam Faruk over allegations of amassing illegal wealth worth Tk 3,000 crore.

The commission formed an inquiry team led by assistant director Rakibul Hayat, asking it to carry out a probe over the graft allegations, said its deputy director Aktarul Islam.

According to the allegations, Faruk abused his power during his service tenure to illegally amass Tk 3,000 crore from all over the country even from remote areas.

Bangladeshi citizen Faruk is also a holder of the green card which is a Permanent Resident Card for immigrants in the United States. His wife’s brothers and sisters are also permanent residents of the USA, according to the primary allegations brought against Faruk.

The former police officer allegedly laundered illegal money worth Tk 2,500 crore to the USA through close relatives, while with the rest Tk 500 crore he bought assets, including land, apartments and houses, in different parts of the country and kept deposits in several banks.

Most of these assets he had bought in the names of his wife Sharmeen Akhtar Khan and other close relatives and family members, according to the allegations.

With his illegal money Faruk built Ghatandi Alhaj Khandkar Hyder Ali Memorial High School on several bigha of land and also constructed a three-storey luxurious building at his village home in Tangail.

Of Faruk’s three brothers, one Khandkar Habibur Rahman Selim has Tk 50 lakh in several banks, while his wife has land property worth about Tk 30 crore in her name, as per allegations.

Another brother, Khandkar Suruj, owns a motor parts shop worth around Tk 3 crore at Bhuapur bus stand in Tangail, while he and his wife possess land worth Tk 25 crore.

Another brother, Khandkar Firoz, alias Kalu, owns land worth Tk 2 crore and has about Tk 40 lakh in banks.

Faruk’s younger sister and her husband also own huge wealth, as per allegations.

Faruk allegedly amassed wealth worth Tk 200 crore during his tenure as an assistant commissioner of police in Chittagong in 1993–1995.

He illegally amassed Tk 150 crore during his term as superintendent of police in Thakurgaon in 2004–2006. He also amassed Tk 300 crore illegally during his tenure as police super in Mymensingh in 2009–2012, and also made another Tk 500 crore in illegal earning during his tenure as Rangpur Range deputy inspector general of police.

During his tenure as Dhaka Metropolitan Police commissioner, the former police official allegedly secured Tk 1,450 crore in illegal income.

The police arrested former police commissioner Khandaker Golam Faruk on Saturday from Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in the capital just before he was due to fly for Bangkok on a personal trip.

A number of cases were filed against him after then prime minister Sheikh Hasina had resigned and fled to India amid a student-led mass uprising on August 5, bringing the downfall of the Awami League regime.​

 

[Saif]

Former agri minister arrested in Dhaka

Former agriculture minister Abdus Shahid was arrested in the capital’s Uttara area yesterday.

www.thedailystar.net

Former agri minister arrested in Dhaka

Abdus Shahid

Former agriculture minister Abdus Shahid was arrested in the capital's Uttara area yesterday.

A team of police arrested Shahid him from a house at Sector-10 of Uttara, Hafizur Rahman, officer-in-charge of Uttara West Police Station, told The Daily Star.

Shahid, former lawmaker from Moulvibazar-4 and also former chief whip of the Jatiya Sangsad, is accused in several cases filed with Uttara west and other police stations, said the OC.

In September this year, the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) decided to launch an inquiry against Shahid on charges of abusing power, engaging in various irregularities, and amassing wealth through corruption.​

 

[Saif]

Govt should bust nexus of tycoons close to Hasina

POWERFUL business tycoons, who had been close to the deposed prime minister Sheikh Hasina, have swindled $17 billion off the banking sector, as the Bangladesh Bank government has said in an interview with the Financial Times, during the 15 years of the authoritarian regime of the Awami League...

www.newagebd.net

Govt should bust nexus of tycoons close to Hasina
30 October, 2024, 00:00

POWERFUL business tycoons, who had been close to the deposed prime minister Sheikh Hasina, have swindled $17 billion off the banking sector, as the Bangladesh Bank government has said in an interview with the Financial Times, during the 15 years of the authoritarian regime of the Awami League. The central banker is reported to have said that the tycoons worked with the military intelligence agency in this. He has also alleged in the interview that the agency facilitated the takeover of major banks which led to the systematic transfer of the money out of Bangladesh. This is said to be the biggest robbing of banks by any international standards that would not be possible without intelligence officials pressuring the chiefs of the banks into compliance. The money was swindled out in loans given out to new shareholders and inflated import invoices while the government during the 15 years pursued a development model frenziedly obsessed with growth in gross domestic product and per capita income that have hardly benefitted people at large. What is further disparaging is that the S Alam Group alone is involved in the laundering of at least $10 billion. All this is but a fraction of the whole illicit capital flow.

The central bank governor has said that intelligence officials forced members on bank boards to sell their shares at gunpoint to the S Alam Group chief, with one bank after another facing coercive takeover. All this cannot have happened without the involvement of ranking government leaders. Most of the activities of the group was suspicious and questionable. Yet, nothing could then be done to stop such happenings. This suggests the intensity of the influence that the S Alam Group enjoyed on the government. And, all such incidents left the economy high and dry. The interim government, installed on August 8 after the deposed prime minister had fled to India on August 5, has the repatriation of the money thus laundered high on its agenda. The government has now sought international assistance to investigate overseas assets of Sheikh Hasina’s associates. It has, therefore, become imperative that the government should go all out to repatriate the money that has been laundered in all such cases and hold to justice all the offenders. The government should also hold to justice all the people and quarters involved in the offences. The government should arrest chiefs of all the banks and the people and quarters concerned in the Bangladesh Bank, which is the regulator of the banking sector, and interrogate them to get a clear picture of how the offences have happened for an insight into ways to stop their recurrence and bring to justice others who were also involved.

The interim government should, therefore, recover the stolen funds that have left dozens of bank mostly bankrupt and the economy dry. It should also hold to justice people in the nexus, still at large on both the private and the public side, to stop the recurrence of such scams.​