The trial of former Inspector General of Police (IGP) Benazir Ahmed formally began on Sunday, as charges were framed against him in connection with the illegal acquisition of assets worth over Tk11 crore.
The charges were framed by Judge Abdullah Al Mamun of Dhaka’s Special Judge Court-5, following a hearing. The court has set 13 May as the date for the start of witness testimony
The case was filed by Hafizul Islam, deputy director of the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC), on 15 December, 2024.
Following a detailed investigation, the ACC submitted a charge sheet on 30 November last year, accusing Benazir Ahmed of amassing wealth beyond his known sources of income, concealing asset information, and engaging in money laundering.
According to the details provided in the charge sheet, Benazir Ahmed had initially declared immovable assets worth Tk6.45 crore and movable assets worth Tk5.74 crore in his wealth statement.
However, the investigation revealed evidence of assets totaling Tk7.52 crore in immovable property and Tk 8.15 crore in movable property-amounting to Tk 15.68 crore in total.
The investigation also found that Benzir Ahmed’s legitimate income sources amounted to Tk 6.59 crore. After deducting expenses, his net savings stood at Tk4.63 crore.
This discrepancy led to the allegation that the former IGP accumulated Tk 11.04 crore in assets beyond his known sources of income.
The charge sheet further claims that former IGP deliberately concealed the illegal sources, nature, and ownership of these assets.
He is accused of transferring and converting them through various bank accounts, business ventures, and joint investments.
