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Charge sheet against casino kingpins this month


Published : 20 Sep 2020 09:41 PM | Updated : 21 Sep 2020 01:56 AM

The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) is going to submit charge sheets against 25 casino kingpins in 22 cases in connection with the illegal running casino business and money laundering.

As the ACC nearly completes the preparing of charge sheet against 25 casino dons including expelled Juba League leaders Ismail HossainSamrat, GK Shamim, and Khaled Mahmud Bhuiyan, the graft watchdog will submit it this month.Charges will be filed on the merits of crime. 

The Commission wants to end the legal process against those who are in ACC’s list, its Chairman Iqbal Mahmood told the media recently.

On September 18 last year, the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) launched the crackdown on casino operation. Later, ACC and police’s Criminal Investigation Agency (CID) began investigating into the casino businesses.

People familiar with the matter said the anti-casino drive slowed in the middle. However, none of the casino kingpins who are behind the bars has managed to walk out of jail on bail.

Meanwhile, the graft watchdog seized assets worth Tk 655 crore from 25 people facing charges in 22 cases. 

In addition, the ACC completed its search for illegally-amassed wealth owned by 16 casino mafias whose names were in its list.ACC director Syed Iqbal Hossain is leading the search and investigation.

On October 21 last year, the ACC filed the first case against GK Shamim who owns immovable assets worth Tk 324.56 crore in 19 banks.. His mother Ayesha Akhter was also named in the case.

Assets worth Tk 31.56 crore of former organizing secretary of Juba League’sDhaka Metropolitan South unit Khaled was also frozen.

On December 12, 2019, the ACC sued Samrat, expelled president of Juba League Dhaka Metropolitan South, and court froze his money too.

The ACC sued his associate Juba League South’s expelled vice-presidentEnamulHaque Arman illegally amassing wealth worth Tk 2.54 crore. 

Another casino kingpins Selim Pradhan, who owns assets worth Tk 54.5 lakh, was sued by the ACC on October 26 last year. 

The ACC filed graft cases against the director of Mohammedan Sporting Club and the director of Bangladesh Cricket Board Lokman Hossain Bhuiyan.

The court froze both of their movable assets.

On October 23 last year, agraft case was filed against Awami League leader RuponBhuiyan. His movable assets worth Tk 6.84 crore have been frozen.

On the same day, the ACC also filed a case against his brother EnamulHaqueEnu for illegal assets.

ACC Director (Media and Public Relations) Pranab Kumar Bhattacharya told Bangladesh Post that they could not reveal any specific date to press the charges against the casino kingpins.

“We will reveal it after the Commission approves the charges,” he added.