A Dhaka court on Monday sentenced 11 people including expelled Awami League leaders Enamul Haque Bhuiyan alias Enu and Rupon Bhuiyan to seven years in prison each in a case filed over money laundering.
Judge Mohammad Iqbal Hossain of Dhaka Special Judge Court-5 handed down the verdict. He also fined the convicts a total amount of Taka four crore for their involvement in illegal casino business.
The other convicts are Shahidul Haque Bhuiyan, Rashidul Haque Bhuiyan, Merajul Haque Bhuiyan, Saiful Islam, Joy Gopal Sarkar,
Pavel Rahman, Tuhin Munshi, Abul Kalam Azad and Nabir Hossain Sikder.
Enu, the expelled vice-president of Awami League's Gandaria unit, and Rupon, the expelled joint general secretary of the same unit, and five others were present at the court during the verdict.
Among the convicts, Shiplu, Rashidul, Sahidul and Pavel have been absconding while Tuhin is on bail. The other six are in jail.
Organised crime and money laundering are serious threats to the rule of law and sustainable development, the court said in its observation.
Money laundering is now a serious crime as it can destabilise the country's financial system and damage development efforts if left unchecked, the judge stated.
Earlier on March 16, the court had set April 6 to hand down the verdict in the case after closing arguments. But, the date was later deferred.
On January 13 in 2020, Enu, Rupon and their associate Sunny were arrested from Dhaka's Keraniganj.
According to law enforces, they were planning to flee to Nepal via India by using fake passports. Some of them used to bring casino materials from Nepal and supplied those to buyers here across the country. They own a total of 22 buildings, plots and 128 flats in the capital and have crores of Taka in different bank accounts.
CID Inspector Sadek Ali, also investigation officer of the case, submitted the charge sheet against the accused on July 26 in 2020.
The court framed charges against them on May 5 last year.
The court recorded statements of 10 prosecution witnesses, including the complainant of the case.