Staff Reporter :
The New York Supreme Court has greenlit the continuation of the lawsuit filed by Bangladesh Bank regarding the $81 million cyber heist that took place in 2016, though it has dismissed several allegations against Rizal Commercial Banking Corp (RCBC).
The appellate division, first judicial department of the Supreme Court of the State of New York, decided to drop three charges: conversion, aiding and abetting conversion, and conspiracy to commit conversion, against RCBC and all related defendants, as reported by the Philippines Daily Inquirer.
Additionally, the court ruled it does not have personal jurisdiction over four RCBC individuals (Ismael Reyes, Brigitte Capiña, Romualdo Agarrado, and Nestor Pineda), leading to the dismissal of the case against them.
According to a stock exchange disclosure on Friday, RCBC acknowledged the receipt of the New York Supreme Court’s decision dated 29 February this year and is presently contemplating its subsequent actions.
Despite these dismissals, the court will still consider the claim related to the recovery of the misappropriated funds, thus keeping alive Bangladesh Bank’s pursuit to reclaim the stolen money.
The initial lawsuit, lodged in state court on 27 May 2020, encompassed various claims including conversion/theft/misappropriation, fraud against RCBC, aiding and abetting and conspiracy to commit these acts, conspiracy to commit trespass against chattels, unjust enrichment, and the restitution of received money.
The court, in a ruling on 14 January 2023, without delving into the merits of the case, affirmed its jurisdiction over RCBC and the individual defendants.
This lawsuit is part of Bangladesh Bank’s broader efforts to recoup $81 million siphoned off by purported North Korean hackers.
This amount was part of a larger $101 million stolen from Bangladesh Bank’s account at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York via fraudulent SWIFT payment requests.
