ACC quizzes businessman Saiful for five hours in AB Bank money laundering probe

The Anti-Corruption Commission, which probing the money laundering allegation against AB Bank, has quizzed businessman Saiful Haque for five hours.

Saiful, an AB Bank client, who was reported to have evaded ACC summons, appeared at the Commission at 10am on Monday. Investigation officers questioned him until 3pm regarding his involvement in alleged charges, an ACC official said.

ACC Deputy-Director (Public Relations) Pranab Kumar Bhattacharjee said the investigators also questioned bank director BB Saha on the same day relating to the case.

ACC Director Syed Iqbal Hossain and Assistant Director Gulshan Anwar Prodhan are conducting the investigation.

Neither Saiful nor Saha spoke to the media after they came out of the ACC. Investigation officials were not immediately available for comment.

According to ACC, a total of Tk 1.65 billion is believed to have laundered in the name of investment through Pinnacle Global Fund or PGF, a firm based in UAE and Singapore which took place between October 2013 and June 2014, when M Wahidul Haque was the chairman of AB Bank.

The officials involved in the investigation said a decision to raise a $100 million fund—$20 million of AB Bank and $80 million of PGF— and invest it in Dubai was made in 2013.

In February 2014, AB Bank sent $20 million from one of its offshore units to an account of another bank in Abu Dhabi without taking the Bangladesh Bank’s permission.

The money was later embezzled, and Saiful and one of his friends, Khurram Abdullah, a UAE citizen, played a role in the so-called investment and embezzlement of the money.

ACC suspects Saiful, who owns Atlantic Enterprise, was involved in the scam. Saiful is also a director of Sky Aviation Services, an agent of FlyDubai GSA Bangladesh.

A former official of Standard Chartered Bank, Saiful has no share in AB Bank. His father-in-law, BNP leader M Morshed Khan, a former foreign minister, however, is the founding chairman of the bank.

Saiful had influenced much of the bank’s work using his connections, several sources told bdnews24.com.

In the AB Bank money-laundering scam probe, the ACC has already quizzed 15 people, including its former chairman M Wahidul Haque, two former managing directors and six current directors.

Besides Wahidul, Fazlur and Shamim, the ACC has questioned Abu Hena Mostafa Kamal, who had headed the financial institute and treasury department of the bank, Head of Corporate and Structured Finance Division Mahfuz-Ul-Islam, Head of Offshore Banking Unit or OBU Mohammad Lokman, OBU official Md Arif Newaz, Secretary Mahdev Sarker Sumon and MN Azim, an official at the bank’s headquarters.

The six directors quizzed by the ACC on Sunday were Shishir Ranjan Bose, Mesbahul Hoque, Md Fahimul Haque, Syed Afzal Hasan Uddin, Runa Zakia and Prof M Imtiaz Hossain.

It has also imposed a ban on 16 current and former AB Bank officials including former chairman Wahidul from travelling abroad until their investigation is complete.