A Dhaka court on Thursday framed charges against former managing director (MD) of NRB Global Bank PK Halder, and 13 others in a case filed over laundering money abroad and amassing illegal wealth.
Judge Mohammad Nazrul Islam of the Special Judge’s Court-10 passed the order.
Other accused in the case are -- PK Halder’s mother Lilabati Halder, Purnima Rani Halder, Uttam Kumar Mistry, Amitabh Adhikari, Pritish Kumar Halder, Rajib Som, Subrata Das, Ananga Mohan Roy, Swapan Kumar Mistry, Avantika Baral, Shankha Bepari, Sukumar Mridha and Anindita Mridha.
Among them, Avantika Baral, Shankha Bepari, Sukumar Mridha and Anindita Mridha are in jail.
Defence counsel submitted petitions before the court seeking discharge the four out of fourteen accused from the case. The court, however, rejected the petition.
PK Halder and nine others were shown fugitive in the charge sheet and charges were framed against them in their absence.
ACC Public Prosecutor Mir Ahmed Ali Salam said, the court also fixed September 22 for starting trial of the case.
“This is the first ever case that charge was framed against PK Halder who is an accused in over 37 cases,” he said.
On January 8, 2020, the ACC filed a case against PK Halder for acquiring and smuggling illegal assets worth Tk 275 crore. The investigation of the case has so far received information about embezzlement and smuggling of around Tk 3,000 crore.
He is the former managing director of NRB Global Bank. At the same time, he controlled four other financial institutions - International Leasing and Financial Services (ILFSL), People's Leasing and Financial Services, FAS Finance and Investment Limited and Bangladesh Industrial Finance Company (BIFC).
PK Halder was arrested in Ashoknagar of India’s West Bengal on May 14 this year.
