Bangladesh Bank reserve theft: CID asks for more time to submit probe report

The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) of the police has once again sought time from the court to submit its probe report on the Bangladesh Bank reserve theft case as the investigating officer (IO) is out of the country presently.

"CID appealed to the prosecution wing of Dhaka Chief Metropolitan Magistrate's Court on Tuesday for an extension by informing the court about the IO of the case being out of the country," CID's Financial Crimes Unit Special Superintendent (SS) Humayun Kabir told The Business Standard.

"The investigating officer of the case, Raihan Uddin Khan is currently in Saudi Arabia with his family to perform Umrah Hajj. For this reason, he could not be present even though he was ordered to appear in court. We have informed the matter and appealed for time," he added.

However, he did not want to comment on why the investigation of the case was not completed yet.

CID's Additional Superintendent of Police Raihan Uddin Khan had been asked to appear in court on Tuesday.  Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Arafatul Rakib on Sunday (2 October) had set 4 October for holding a hearing on the time petition and asked the IO to appear in the court.

Officials of the prosecution wing of the court said that the date of submitting the investigation report in the case was set on Sunday. However, the CID requested the court for time to submit its investigation report. The time of submitting the investigation report of this case has been delayed 60 times.

Meanwhile, the IO has been ordered to appear before the court in person with an updated probe report in the case.

Earlier on 17 august, the court had asked the CID to submit its probe report, in the case filed over the reserve stolen from the central bank's reserves.

Six years have passed since the central bank's reserve heist but the government's ongoing legal battle in the US court to recover $66.54 million has not made much progress.

Only $14.61 million out of the $81 million stolen money have been retrieved as yet.

Moreover, the CID has not yet even completed its investigation into the case filed by the Bangladesh Bank with the Motijheel Police Station following the reserve theft.

The CID claimed that their investigation is nearing completion and soon will file a charge sheet.

An investigation committee led by former Bangladesh Bank governor Mohammed Farashuddin submitted its report on the heist in 2016 but it has not been made public.

On 4 February 2016, hackers stole $101 million from the Bangladesh Bank's accounts with the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.