Casino kingpin Samrat to walk free as he gets bail in all cases

Ismail Hossain Chowdhury Samrat, the expelled Jubo League leader and the alleged casino kingpin, is set to walk free as he has secured bail in all four cases filed against him.

On Wednesday, Dhaka Sixth Special Judge Al Asad Md Asifuzzaman granted his bail plea in a graft case over illegally amassing wealth. Earlier, the same court denied his bail petition twice. Samrat had previously secured bail in three other cases.

However, Samrat will remain at the Coronary Care Unit (CCU) of the Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU) hospital for treatment.

"Samrat was officially released from jail custody around 4:30 pm on Wednesday. After completion of all formalities the jail security was removed from the CCU ward of the hospital," said Subhash Kumar Ghosh, senior jail superintendent of Dhaka Central Jail.

BSMMU Director Brigadier General Nazrul Islam Khan said that Samrat will undergo a health check-up on Thursday, following which doctors will advise how long he will need to stay at the hospital.

The expelled Jubo League leader has been undergoing treatment at the BSMMU hospital since November last year.

Earlier on 10 April Samrat secured bail in a money laundering case and possession of arms case. On 11 April he was granted bail in a narcotics case.  

On 12 November 2019, ACC Deputy Director Md Jahangir Alam started the case of illegally amassing Tk2.95 crore worth of wealth. Following an investigation, Md Jahangir Alam filed the charge sheet on 26 November 2020.  

On 6 October 2019, the Rapid Action Battalion arrested Samrat from Cumilla over his alleged ties with the illegal gambling racket.

The RAB later conducted a raid on Samrat's office in Kakrail's Bhuiyan Trade Centre and recovered a foreign pistol, yaba tablets, bottles of foreign liquor and two kangaroo hides.

A mobile court handed Samrat a six-month prison sentence for possession of the kangaroo skins under the Wild Animal Protection Act and he was later sent to the Dhaka Central Jail in Keraniganj.

Later, two more cases were filed against him under the Narcotics Control Act and Arms Act with the Ramna Police Station.