The United Kingdom鈥檚 National Crime Agency has frozen properties in the United Kingdom owned by Saifuzzaman Chowdhury, Bangladesh鈥檚 former minister of land, according to a report by Al Jazeera鈥檚 Investigative Unit.
鈥楲ast night, in a statement to the I-Unit, an NCA spokesperson confirmed the freezing order: 鈥榃e can confirm that the NCA has secured freezing orders against a number of properties as part of an on-going civil investigation鈥�, Al Jazeera reported on June 11.聽
The move follows legal requests from Bangladesh authorities to take action against assets owned by former minister Saifuzzaman, a political ally of deposed Bangladesh prime minister Sheikh Hasina of the Awami League, activities of which were recently banned until trial of its leaders and activists involved in atrocities during the July uprising.
Saifuzzaman is under investigation by Bangladesh authorities for money laundering.
The property freeze means, in effect, that the assets cannot be sold by former land minister Saifuzzaman, the report mentioned.
The action by the police agency, often dubbed 鈥楤ritain鈥檚 FBI鈥�, coincided with this week鈥檚 visit to London by Bangladesh鈥檚 interim government chief adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus.
Last year, Al Jazeera revealed Saifuzzaman, 56, owns more than 350 properties in the UK. While the full extent of the NCA鈥檚 action is not yet understood, the I-Unit can disclose that Saifuzzaman鈥檚 luxury home in St John鈥檚 Wood, London, is part of the asset freeze, according the report available online.
The home, bought for 11 million pounds ($14.8m), was the scene of secret filming by undercover reporters from Al Jazeera鈥檚 I-Unit.
Reporters met Saifuzzaman during a long-running investigation into wealth that he had accumulated while he was still a government minister.
During the meeting, Saifuzzaman talked expansively to reporters about his global property portfolio and revealed his taste for expensive suits and designer 鈥榖aby croc鈥� leather shoes. He described his close ties to the now deposed Sheikh Hasina, telling Al Jazeera鈥檚 journalists, 鈥業 am like her son, actually.鈥�
鈥楽he knows I have a business here,鈥� he also told them.
The I-Unit revealed that Saifuzzaman, from a powerful family in the port city of Chittagong, amassed a property empire despite a $12,000 annual limit as part of the nation鈥檚 currency laws on the amount a citizen can take out of Bangladesh.
The investigation uncovered that he spent more than $500m on real estate in London, Dubai, and New York but did not declare his overseas assets on his Bangladesh tax returns, according to the report.
The undercover meeting was part of the Al Jazeera documentary The Minister鈥檚 Millions, broadcast last October.
Saifuzzaman had been a close ally of Bangladesh鈥檚 deposed prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who fled Bangladesh in August 2024 after hundreds were killed as security forces cracked down on student protests, the report mentioned.
After Hasina鈥檚 departure, Bangladesh authorities launched an investigation into allegations of widespread corruption in her government.
Following the uprising and street violence in Bangladesh, the I-Unit tracked down Saifuzzaman to his London home, where he could be observed taking leisurely walks around his exclusive neighbourhood, which includes Lord鈥檚 Cricket Ground.
In earlier statements to Al Jazeera, Saifuzzaman said the funds used to buy his overseas properties came from legitimate businesses outside Bangladesh, which he had owned for years.
The former minister claimed that he became the subject of a politically motivated 鈥榳itch-hunt鈥� operation, the Qatar-based media outlet reported.