The Dhaka Metropolitan Senior Special Judge Court on Tuesday ordered the Anti-Corruption Commission to seize foreign assets of S Alam Group chairman Mohammed Saiful Alam and his wife Farzana Parveen in three countries, including the British Virgin Islands, over allegations of money laundering.
Saiful Alam, who was a close associate of deposed prime minister Sheikh Hasina, and his family members are facing cases and probes into alleged loan irregularities and money laundering involving huge sums.
The court also imposed a travel ban on 10 current and former officials of Islami Bank Bangladesh over allegations of facilitating crooked loans to the S Alam Group, resulting in embezzlement of a huge amount of money.
Judge Md Jakir Hossain of the Dhaka Metropolitan Senior Special Judge Court ordered the seizure of the foreign assets of Saiful Alam and his wife following a petition submitted by ACC deputy director Tahasin Monabil Haq.
According to the ACC, the couple owns a two-storey house in Cyprus, shares in 19 companies in the British Virgin Islands, and stakes in six companies registered in Jersey, a self-governing British Crown dependency.
One of the companies in the British Virgin Islands, Hazel International PTE Limited, has an estimated value of $5,95,000.
The ACC alleged that these assets were acquired with funds generated through 鈥榠llegal鈥� means, and it said the couple might attempt to transfer the properties.
The court ordered the relevant authorities to send copies of the orders to the respective jurisdictions in the three countries for taking the next course of action to seize the assets abroad.
ACC public prosecutor Mir Ahmed Ali Salam told 抖阴精品 that after a court ordered seizure of the foreign assets of any graft suspect, the ACC sent the court鈥檚 order and details of the asset through the Bangladesh embassies to the authorities concerned of the countries requesting them to seize the assets.
Of the assets ordered to be seized, Saiful Alam owns 7,000 shares (70 per cent of total share) worth $2,45,000 while his wife owns 3,000 share (30 per cent of total share) worth $1,05,000 in Hazel International PTE LTD in the British Virgin Islands.
The company was incorporated on March 19, 2019, for the purpose real estate agents and brokers, hotels and resorts.
The couple own shares in Peacock Property Holdings Limited incorporated on May 22, 2019, in the British Virgin Islands and the company is engaged in investment holdings and the aim of the company is to hold shares in various companies that are engaged in the holdings of real estate and bank accounts in Singapore.
Apart from this, there are investments of Saiful Alam in 18 companies in the British Virgin Islands. The companies are Adair International Pte Ltd which was incorporated in 2021, Canali Logistics Pte Ltd in 2011, Golden Trail International Pte Ltd in 2018, Greenwich International Pte Ltd in 2024,聽 Hamilton International Pte Ltd in 2018, Honeywel International Pte Ltd in 2016, Linear International Pte Ltd in 2024, Livona Pte Ltd in 2018, LU Shui International Pte Ltd in 2020, Marico International Pte Ltd in 2021, Pittsdale International Pte Ltd in 2017, Qing Shu International Pte Ltd in 2020, Springfield International Pte Ltd in 2018, Trivoli Trading Pte Ltd in 2018, Wavepac International Pte Ltd in 2021 and Zenita International Pte Ltd in 2021.
Saiful Alam and Farzana Parveen have also joint investments in six Jersey trusts which are administered by a Jersey trust company in the British Virgin Islands. The six are Maple Trust, Capri Trust, Surrey Trust, Shenton Trust, Marina Trust and Mission Trust.
The investment amount is $210 million in Maple Trust but the amount of investment in other five trusts was not mentioned by the ACC.
The ACC petition said that the commission had already formed a joint probe team and was probing the allegations of money laundering against Saiful Alam and people related to him.
鈥楾hey embezzled a huge amount of money after taking loans from different banks illegally and amassed huge wealth in home and abroad. They are trying to hand over the properties,鈥� it said.
This latest development follows a series of court orders against Saiful Alam and his family members in recent months.
On June 17, the Dhaka Metropolitan Senior Special Judge Court directed the ACC to seize 200.26 acres of immovable property worth Tk聽180.61 crore in Bangladesh.
On April 27, the court ordered the anti-graft agency to seize 563.57 acres of land worth Tk 1,001.76 crore owned by the S Alam Group and its related entities.
On April 23, the court also ordered the ACC to seize 159.15 acres of land worth Tk 407 crore owned by them.
On April 9, the court ordered the ACC to seize 7,919.52 kathas of land worth Tk 325.19 crore of the business group.
On January 30, the court ordered the ACC to seize 58 acres of land worth Tk聽368 crore belonging to Saiful Alam and his family members.
On February 12, the court ordered the ACC to freeze 437.85 crore shares belonging to S Alam and his family in 42 companies. The value of the shares is about Tk聽5,100 crore.
On January 16, the court ordered the freezing of more than 32.1 crore shares worth Tk 350 crore owned by S Alam and his family members in 24 companies.
The court on January 14 ordered the ACC to seize immovable properties worth Tk聽200 crore and the freezing of 87 bank accounts of S Alam, his wife and 16 of his family members.
After the fall of authoritarian Awami League regime in a student-led mass uprising on August 5, 2024, the ACC started inquiries against a number of business group, including the S Alam Group, over various corruption allegations, including money laundering.
The ACC recently started an inquiry against Saiful Alam over allegations of amassing illegal wealth and laundering $1 billion to Singapore and several other countries.
The court on Tuesday imposed the travel ban on 10 current and former officials of Islami Bank Bangladesh following a petition filed by the ACC.
The officials facing the travel ban are former Islami Bank Bangladesh managing director Mohammad Monirul Moula, Miftah Uddin, Mohammad Ihsanul Islam, Mohammad Sirajul Kabir, Muhammad Kaiser Ali, Taher Ahmed Chowdhury, Mohammad Mostaq Ahmed, Hossain Mohammad Faisal, Ahmed Zubayatul Haque and SM Tanvir Hasan.
The ACC in its plea stated that a probe team had been formed to probe allegations of financial irregularities involving Islami Bank Bangladesh and entities associated with the S Alam Group.
The commission sought the travel ban, stating that the accused might attempt to flee the country, which would obstruct the probe.
The same court on Monday sent Monirul Moula to jail in connection with a case filed against him and 57 others on charges of embezzling Tk聽1,092 crore through loan forgery.
Police arrested Monirul Moula from his residence in the capital Dhaka Sunday night.
