Accounts of PK Halder, 82 others with deposits of Tk2,976cr frozen

The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has frozen the bank accounts – having deposits of Tk3,000 crore –  owned by PK Haldar, former managing director of NRB Global Bank and Reliance Finance Ltd, and his 82 accomplices.

ACC sources said they requested the Bangladesh Financial Intelligence Unit (BFIU) to freeze these accounts as an enquiry into their alleged fund embezzlement and money laundering is ongoing. As per the ACC's request, the BFIU froze their accounts.

ACC Deputy Director Gulshan Anwar Pradhan conducting the probe.

Sources at the anti-graft body further said that they have also identified more Tk1500 crore which will be frozen. The investigation is now at the last stage and they will file cases shortly.

According to ACC records, PK Halder, when he was the managing director of Reliance and an independent director of several other leasing companies, along with his relatives, misappropriated Tk3500 crore from several leasing companies, including People's Leasing.

Halder sold assets of all these companies and took away all the money by selling the shares from the share portfolio of the depositors.

Sources said the ACC has already collected records from People's Leasing, International Leasing and the companies linked to PK Haldar.

In the meantime, all the documents and intelligence reports – involving Haldar's fund misappropriation and his interest-serving organisations – have been collected from the BFIU.

The ACC also sought documents with respect to some companies linked to PK Halder and his associates.

The companies include BR International, Nature Enterprise, New Tech Enterprise, HAL International, Nutriqual Ltd, RB Enterprise, Anan Chemical, Reptiles Firms Ltd, P & L International, Earthscope Ltd., MTB Merin Ltd, Kolasin Ltd, MST Pharma & Health Care, Ookayama Ltd, G&B Enterprise, Drinun Apparels, MOON Enterprise,  Konica Enterprise, Sigma Capital Management, IMEXCO, Sukhada Properties Ltd, Sandip Corporation, Wintel International, Padma Weaving, MOH Fashion, SA Enterprise, Shadat Traders, Sabir Traders, Greenline Development, M/S Bornno, Rahman Chemicals, Crossroad Corporations, Tamim&Talha Brothers Ltd, Designs & Source Ltd, ZA Apparels Ltd., Superior Textile, Northern Jute Manufacturing Company Ltd, Symtex Industries & Symtex Textile Ltd and MJ Trading.

Nine people summoned for interrogation

The ACC has also summoned nine people for interrogation as part of the enquiry.

They are Swapan Kumar Mistry and Kazi Momrej Mahmud, directors at HAL International Ltd & Nutriqual Ltd; Pritish Kumar Halder and Amitav Adhikary, directors at HAL international; Susmita Saha, managing director at HAL international; Ratan Kumar Biswas, director at RB Enterprise; Ujjhal Kumar Nandi and Anita Kar, directors at Anan Chemical; and Shimu Roy, chairman at Reptiles Firm Ltd.

Earlier, last week, the ACC summoned PK Halder and four other businessmen to determine their involvement in the incident.

They are Shaw Wallace Bangladesh Ltd managing director M Nurul Alam, its directors Rezaur Rahman and Syeda Ruhi Gaznavi and Mizanur Rahman.

It is clear to all concerned that PK Halder fled the country when the corruption issue came to light. On January 8 this year, the ACC filed a case against PK Halder on charges of accumulating illegal wealth worth Tk274 crore and money laundering.