Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has approved three cases against former land minister Saifuzzaman Chowdhury and 28 others on charges of embezzling Tk141.20 crore from Islami Bank PLC, under the guise of purchasing raw materials for cement and laundering funds abroad.
The commission has initiated multiple cases against Saifuzzaman on allegations of irregularities, corruption, and money laundering following the recent change in the country’s political landscape.
ACC inquiry revelations
ACC Public Relations Officer Akhtarul Islam confirmed the case approvals on Tuesday.
He mentioned that the funds were taken from the Jubilee Road branch of Islami Bank PLC in Chattogram under the name of Saifuzzaman’s firm, Aramit Cement PLC, ostensibly to purchase raw materials for cement.
However, the commission’s inquiry revealed that fake bills and vouchers were used to withdraw bank funds without any actual trade or purchase taking place.
According to the commission, an investigation is underway regarding allegations of embezzling a total of Tk500 crore through similar transactions. Within these transactions, investigators uncovered evidence of Tk141.20 crore being withdrawn through 27 deals.
This money was allegedly transferred, shifted, and converted across various bank accounts, and subsequently laundered to various countries, including the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the United Kingdom (UK), and the United States (US).
The anti-graft watchdog decided to initiate the three cases after finding preliminary truth in the allegations during its inquiry. Across the three cases, 16, 16, and 20 people have been accused respectively.
Because several individuals are named in more than one case, the total number of unique accused stands at 29.
Among those accused are Saifuzzaman’s wife and Aramit Cement Managing Director Rukhmila Zaman, along with several officials of the company and the banks involved.
The accused will face charges under Sections 409, 420, 467, 468, 471, and 109 of the Penal Code; Section 5(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1947; and Sections 4(2) and 4(3) of the Money Laundering Prevention Act, 2012.
Case-by-case breakdown
According to the ACC’s documents, the first case centres on a transaction executed on 20 March 2018.
Upon an application by Aramit Cement – a customer of Islami Bank’s Jubilee Road branch – a deal was made in the name of Imperial Trading, a customer of First Security Islami Bank’s Agrabad branch.
The ACC has approved filing a case against 16 individuals for embezzling Tk57.60 crore through this transaction.
The second case involves 17 deals executed between 4 April 2018 and 26 December 2019. On Aramit Cement’s application, these deals were carried out in the name of Imperial Trading under the Kamal Bazar branch of United Commercial Bank (UCB) PLC.
The ACC alleges that Tk41.625 crore was embezzled through these deals. This case also names 16 accused.
The third case relates to nine deals executed between 6 August 2020 and 28 March 2021. These transactions were conducted in the name of Imperial Trading under UCB’s Sadarghat branch.
Here, the ACC alleges the embezzlement of Tk42.075 crore, which excludes the customer’s own share of Tk4.675 crore. Twenty people are accused in this case.
While the mathematical sum of the funds in the three cases totals Tk141.30 crore, the official statement and press release from the ACC cite the total figure as Tk141.20 crore, revealing a discrepancy of Tk10 lakh in the documents supplied by the commission.
The accused and their roles
Saifuzzaman Chowdhury, his wife Rukhmila Zaman, Aramit Cement’s Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Mohammad Shah Alam, Imperial Trading’s proprietor Md. Abdul Aziz, and Aramit Cement’s Assistant General Manager (AGM) AKM Maruf are named in all three cases.
Various other officials of Aramit, Islami Bank, UCB, and First Security Islami Bank have also been approved as accused.
The ACC alleges that Saifuzzaman abused his influence as the then Land Minister to facilitate the approval of these bank loans. Furthermore, the commission claims that despite not being a member of the UCB board of directors, he routinely attended board meetings and made decisions.
Saifuzzaman also allegedly manipulated the loan process by presenting Aramit Group employees as independent businessmen and suppliers to secure deal approvals.
The commission claims that Md Abdul Aziz, who was an AGM of Aramit Group and served as Saifuzzaman’s personal assistant, was falsely projected as the owner of Imperial Trading.
His enterprise was registered as the supplier of cement raw materials to open bank accounts and prepare documents for deal approvals, though the inquiry established that no goods were ever supplied.
The ACC’s inquiry indicates that the funds withdrawn from the banks were routed through various accounts. While some portion was withdrawn in cash and another part was used to settle existing liabilities, a significant portion was laundered to the UAE to purchase assets.
The funds were subsequently shifted from the UAE to the UK and the US to purchase properties. The commission has identified Saifuzzaman as the “ultimate beneficiary” and the mastermind behind these transactions.
Regarding other key accused, the ACC has charged bank officials with signing office notes, pay orders, and other documents without conducting proper verification of the actual supply of goods.
Rukhmila Zaman is accused of exerting influence to secure loan approvals and participating in the money transfer process. Aramit Cement CFO Mohammad Shah Alam is alleged to have submitted applications for deal approvals despite being aware that no goods had been supplied.
