Court Correspondent :
A Dhaka court yesterday (Monday) sentenced seven former officials of Oriental Bank to 10 years’ imprisonment with a fine of Tk one crore ninety lakh in a loan scam case.
Judge Hosne Ara Begum of Dhaka’s Special Judge Court-2 pronounced the verdict on Monday afternoon in absence of the convicts. The court directed them to pay fine equally.
The convicts are the bank’s former senior vice-president Shah Md Harun, former senior assistant Vice-president Abul Kashem Mahmud Ullah, former Assistant Vice-President Md Fazlur Rahman, former executive vice-president Md Tariqul Alam, former senior executive vice-president Mahmud Hossain, former executive vice-president Kamrul Islam and former deputy general manager (DGM) Emanul Hoque. All of them are on the run.
The court directed them to deposit the total amount of fine within 60 days, in default the amount will be recovered from the property of the convicts Under Section 386(1)(b) of the Code of Criminal Procedure.
The case record says that the convicted officials in connivance with one another disbursed a loan of Tk one crore to fake company, Tanveer Agency within an unbelievable short time from Babu Bazar branch of the bank. Later, on December 29, the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) lodged the case against them. One Md Kamrul Ahsan is the proprietor of the company on paper.
The principal loan amount of Tk one crore rose to Tk 1,62,25,490 with interest accrued on the date when the case was lodged. ACC Deputy Director Md Zahangir Alam filed a case with Motijheel Police Station on December 29, 2006 in connection with the scam. Investigation Officer Sheikh Faiaj Alam submitted the charge sheet of the case to the court in 2013. Four persons were made witnesses in the case and all of them testified in the court.
ACC Special Public Prosecutor Md Kabir Hossain conducted the case on behalf of the state.
