Sylhet Bureau:
A man named Delwar Hossain has tricked hundreds of people by promising to send them to Italy, a European country, on work permit visas. His other two brothers, Kawsar Hossain and Tarek Hossain, are involved in this fraud. They are all sons of Shafayat Ali of Jaldhup Pahariabahar area of Lauta Union of Beanibazar Upazila of Sylhet district.
The gang has extorted Tk 12 to 15 lakh from each person within 6 months in a contract written on a stamp. About 150 people have been cheated by signing a contract to go to Italy with him. Some of the victims narrated their plight at a press conference organized at Sylhet Press Club on Wednesday.
In a written statement on behalf of the victims, Jamil Ahmed of Charkhai village in Beanibazar upazila said, in the hope of a better life, as a remittance fighter for his family and country, he signed a contract with Delwar Hossain of Jaldhup Pahariabahar in 2023 with the aim of legally going to Italy, a European country, on a work permit visa. Delwar lured them by saying that his brother Kawsar Hossain is there and they have their own company in Italy. Although the contract said that the money would be returned if the visa was not issued within six months, Delwar and his two brothers Kawsar and Tarek started delaying the payment. They even used political identities to avoid paying the money. Beanibazar threatened many people under the umbrella of the Awami League. Due to which many people withdrew from the protest. However, later they all filed 5 cases against him. After filing the case, they are being harassed in various cases by portraying them as Awami League associates.
They said at the press conference that many people sold their family property in good faith to go to Italy and gave money to Delwar. They have been living a life of inhumane loss for a long time. They are also being condemned by their families and society. Many of the victims were from the Middle East whose monthly income was 50 to 1 lakh taka. Some of the victims have complained to the Lauta Union Parishad Chairman in this regard. In addition, many have personally filed written complaints with the Beanibazar Police Station to get their money back. However, no solution has been found. Since the fall of the previous government, Delwar Hossain has been hiding from public view and has lost contact. They complained that they did not get even the slightest consolation from his family or his father even after visiting his house. However, Delwar and his brothers have built up a mountain of illegal assets worth crores of taka in Beanibazar, Sylhet and other places. They have sought the intervention of the administration to get the money they are owed. Among the victims present at the press conference were Murad Ahmed of Charkhai village in Beanibazar, Mamunur Rashid of Purba Debarai village, Tanim Mahmud of Sridhara village, Sahel Ahmed of Golapganj, Samad Ahmed of Beanibazar, Abdus Shahid, Khaled Ahmed and Sujit Chandra Ghosh of Barolekhar, and Abdul Hakim of Zakiganj.
