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At least 12 buses were set on fire by unidentified miscreants at a terminal in Faridpur district town in the early hours of Saturday, prompting the police to initiate a criminal probe.
All the buses -- owned by former Awami League leader Sajjad Hossain Barkat and his brother Imtiaz Hossain Rubel, both facing money laundering charges -- had been kept at the terminal since their seizure by the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) in June 2020.
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Md Alimuzzaman, superintendent of Faridpur Police, said that some assailants set the 12 buses of ‘South Line’ Paribahan on fire around 1.30am at the terminal in Goalchamte. "Some 22 buses were parked at the terminal," he said.
On information, fire tenders were rushed to the spot and the blaze was eventually estinguished.
Suraiya Parveen, wife of Barkat, said that a local court on February 25, 2020, ordered the seizure of 55 vehicles, owned by Barkat-Rubel.
Shipul Ahmed, assistant director of Faridpur Fire Service and Civil Defense, said, “A probe is on to unearth the origin of the fire.”
“The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) will look into the case,” said inspector Nasir Hossain.
On March 3 last year, the CID filed a chargesheet against 10 people, including Barkat and Rubel, in a Tk 2,000-crore money laundering case.
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CID's assistant superintendent Uttam Kumar Biswas submitted the chargesheet in the Dhaka metropolitan magistrate's court.