Staff Reporter :
A Dhaka court has ordered the freezing of 21 bank accounts belonging to three associates of the disgraced former Managing Director of NRB Global Bank and Reliance Finance Limited, Prashanta Kumar (PK) Halder.
Judge Md. Zakir Hossain Galib of the Dhaka Metropolitan Sessions Judge’s Court on Sunday issued the order in response to a petition filed by the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC).
Among the frozen accounts, 11 belong to Md. Siddiqur Rahman, four to Mahfuza Rahman Baby, and six to Anita Kar.
ACC’s Petition and Allegations According to court sources, ACC Deputy Assistant Director Sabrina Zaman submitted the petition requesting the freezing of the accounts.
The petition stated that PK Halder, along with his associate Swapan Kumar Mistri and 20 others, misused their power with fraudulent intent.
They facilitated fake loans without proper verification, collateral, or mortgage through a shell company named Sandip Corporation, owned by Swapan Kumar Mistri.
The beneficiaries allegedly withdrew Tk 40 crore from FAS Finance and Investment Ltd. and later laundered the money through various fraudulent companies and personal accounts.
Ongoing Investigation and Court Proceedings In light of these allegations, a case was filed against PK Halder, Swapan Kumar Mistri, and 20 others on March 3, 2022.
Investigations revealed that Siddiqur Rahman, Mahfuza Rahman Baby, and Anita Kar took loans under the names of fake companies and attempted to embezzle and transfer the funds elsewhere.
PK Halder is currently in custody in India, while intelligence sources indicate that his associates in
Bangladesh were attempting to withdraw these funds. Authorities fear that if they succeed, they may flee the country to evade justice.
As a preventive measure, the court has ordered the freezing of the identified accounts to ensure that no further financial transactions take place.
