A Dhaka court on Sunday fixed February 28 for announcing verdict against 19 people, including Hallmark Chairman Jasmine Islam and Managing Director Tanvir Mahmud in a case filed for swindling over Tk 10.5 crore out of Sonali Bank.
Judge Md Abul Kashem of the Special Judge Court-1 of Dhaka set the date for delivery of judgment in the case. Jasmine's brother Tusher Ahmed, Humayun Kabir, the then managing director of Sonali Bank and Jamal Uddin Sarker, a union parishad chairman, who issued fake trade license to the business group, are among the accused.
This is for the first time that a Dhaka court will announce verdict in one of 11 cases filed for swindling over Tk 2,600 crore out of Sonali Bank. Earlier, the court recorded statements of 57 prosecution witnesses, including complainant of the case.
On March 27, 2016, another Dhaka court framed charges against them in the case.
Jasmine, Tanvir and six others are now in jail custody while Jamal is now on bail. And 10 others have been absconding.
On October 7, 2013, the Anti-Corruption Commission pressed charges against 25 people in 11 cases for swindling over Tk 2,600 crore out of Sonali Bank.
During the investigation, Tanvir gave a confessional statement saying that he had handed Tk 3 crore to Taslim Hasan, another accused in the scam, to bribe the board of directors.
The Bangladesh Bank unearthed the over Tk 3,500 crore loan scam in Sonali Bank's Ruposhi Bangla Hotel branch in May 2012. Of the sum, Hallmark alone took Tk 2,686 crore using forged documents in connivance with some bank officials.
Later, the central bank handed over the issue to the ACC. Then in October 2012, the anti-graft body filed 11 cases against 27 top officials of Sonali Bank and Hallmark Group on charges of misappropriating more than Tk 1,568 crore.
The ACC findings show that Sonali Bank's Ruposhi Bangla Hotel branch gave Hallmark Tk 1,568.49 crore in funded loan (money given in cash) between October 2011 and May 2012.