Revenue authority orders freezing of company assets of casino kingpins

National Board of Revenue's central intelligence cell (CIC) has issued an order to freeze the assets of 13 organisations belonging to the most notorious figures involved in casino business in the country.

On September 23 and 24 the investigating agency sent letters to different commercial banks to take steps according to the income tax ordinance, 1984.

The investigating agency especially ordered to freeze these institutions' money or assets kept in bank lockers or vaults. It also asked to freeze investments by these organisations in savings certificates.

Earlier, on September 22, Bangladesh Financial Intelligence Unit (BFIU) sought bank information of Nurunnabi Chowdhury Shaon and his wife Farzana Chowdhury, Jubo League Leader Ismail Chowdhury Samrat and his wife Sharmin Chowdhury, GK

Shamim, his wife Shamima Sultana, and his mother Ayesha Akter, and Khaled Mahmud Bhuiyan. On the next day, Central Intelligence agency ordered the banks to freeze their bank accounts.

According to the letters sent by central intelligence cell, Shaon owns or has involvement in seven institutions, while Samrat has stakes in three institutions, GK Shamim in two and Khaled Mahmud Bhuiyan in one.

Nurunnabi Chowdhury Shaon is the proprietor of Bidya Niketan Pre-cadet school, Naoal Construction, Intisher Fisheries and Digital Tech. His wife Farzana is the proprietor of Farzana Boutique. The proprietor's names for two other companies, also named Naoal Construction, and Ayesha Traders, were not mentioned. CIC says, Shaon and Farzana have stakes in all these companies.

Three companies connected to Samrat are Sharmin Enterprise, Hiz Movies and Principal Real estate.

GK Shamim owns a company named GK Builders. The other company related to him is GKB and Company, but its owner's name was not mentioned in the letters.

Khaled Mahmud Bhuiyan owns Apon Properties.

National Board of Revenue's investigating agency ordered the banks to freeze any Fixed Deposit Receipts, short term deposit, savings account and foreign currency account belonging to these persons and institutions. It also ordered the banks to freeze all the credit cards, banks lockers, investments in saving certificates, and all other saving instruments, and investment scheme bank deposits.

Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) members arrested GK Shamim along with his seven bodyguards from his office on Friday. The elite force seized fixed deposit receipts worth Tk 165 crore, Tk 1.8 crore in cash, $9,000 in cash, 752 Singapore Dollar and an illegal firearm from his house and office at Niketan.

Earlier, on Wednesday RAB arrested Khaled for possessing illegal arms and yaba tablets. On the next day, arms, drugs and money laundering cases were filed against him. The court has placed him on a seven-day remand.