The Central Intelligence Cell (CIC) of the National Board of Revenue (NBR) has uncovered assets worth an estimated Tk 40,000 crore laundered from Bangladesh to various countries around the world, officials said on Sunday.
CIC Director General Ahsan Habib shared the information with Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus during a briefing at the State Guest House Jamuna.
NBR Chairman Md Abdur Rahman Khan was also present.
Ahsan said the findings are the result of extensive searches conducted in seven cities across five countries since January this year.
“So far, we have identified 346 properties overseas that were built using laundered money, registered in the names of individuals and organisations. This is only a partial picture of the full extent of the operation,” he said.
In addition to the assets, CIC investigations found that 352 passports had been acquired by Bangladeshi nationals in exchange for money in nine countries.
The countries are Antigua and Barbuda, Austria, Dominica, Grenada, Saint Kitts and Nevis, North Macedonia, Malta, Saint Lucia, and Turkey.
CIC officers travelled abroad following extensive preparatory work and intelligence gathering in Bangladesh. “What we have found so far is just the tip of the iceberg,” said Habib.
He mentioned several international organisations are cooperating with Bangladesh to aid in the investigation and recovery process.
He added that CIC is now working to confiscate these assets and bring them under the ownership of Bangladesh. Legal action is also being pursued against the individuals and entities involved.
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Habib further disclosed that during the tenure of Sheikh Hasina, people involved in laundering money had strategically placed their own people within the Central Bank's Core Banking System (CBS) control process to erase key information.
However, he said the CIC has now developed the capability to recover deleted data.
Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus said appropriate measures must be taken in collaboration with the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC), the police’s Criminal Investigation Department (CID), and other relevant agencies to identify those involved.
He said such an example should be set so that no one dares to loot the nation’s wealth in the future.
Prof Yunus instructed the CIC to expand its investigation into additional countries and assured full government support for the recovery of assets and prosecution of offenders.
Terming this looting of the country's economic sector as a terrible act of treason, the chief Adviser said, "If we want to build a beautiful country for future generations, these looters must be brought to justice."
He said all relevant organisations must work together to expose how some people have looted the country's resources.