A Dhaka Court on Thursday granted controversial Regent Hospital Chairman, Mohammad Shahed alias Shahed Kabir and its Managing Director Masud Parvez a ten-day remand each over a COVID-19 test scam.
Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Mohammed Jashim passed the order.
Earlier, the Detective Branch of Dhaka Metropolitan Police submitted a prayer seeking a ten-day remand for each.
The two alleged fraudsters were produced before the court at around 10:30 am.
Additional forces were deployed in and around the court premises to avert any untoward situation.
Police allowed only the lawyers of the sides inside the court.
During the court hearing , the suspected master fraud claimed that he himself was COVID-19 positive.
About his involvement in issuing fake COVID-19 reports, he further claimed that he was not involved.
The anti-crime elite force Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) arrested the controversial Md Shahed alias Shahed Karim in Satkhira near the country’s border with India early Wednesday.
RAB nabbed his top associate Masud from Gazipur on July 14.
Earlier in the day, Abdul Baten, additional commissioner (DB) of Dhaka Metropolitan Police, claimed that during primary interrogation, Shahed had admitted his direct involvement in providing fake COVID-19 test reports.
He made the disclosures while talking to a group of journalists at the DB office in the city’s Minto road.
He disclosed that most of the COVID-19 test reports provided from Regent Hospital were actually fake.
The hospitals kept some medical equipment just to eyewash patients, Baten said.
During primary grilling, Shahed himself disclosed that the two branches of his Regent Hospital did never use these equipment for testing COVID-19.
Sensing the possible raid of RAB , he also removed those equipment secretly.
Responding to a question, the DB chief said that they would conduct drives to recover these equipment,if required.
DB investigators would also grill Shahed about his other criminal activities during the remand period.
DB police would register complaints if any victim complained against Shahed.
They will provide necessary cooperation to the victims.
Meanwhile, RAB filed a case against Shahed and three others at Debhata police station in Satkhira for illegal possession of firearms.
RAB-6 Deputy Additional Director Nazrul Islam lodged the case under Section 19A of the Arms Act of 1878 and Section 25B/A of the Special Powers Act 1974, on Wednesday night.
Debhata police station Officer-in-Charge (OC) Biplob Kumar Saha confirmed the matter.
