ACC sues ex-minister Saifuzzaman, wife, 22 others over Tk25cr UCB loan scam
This is the third loan scam case filed against Saifuzzaman Chowdhury, his wife, and UCB officials in two weeks.
The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has filed a loan scam case against former land minister Saifuzzaman Chowdhury, his wife Rukmila Zaman, and 22 others, including senior officials and board members of United Commercial Bank (UCB) PLC.
They are accused of embezzling Tk25 crore by approving a fake loan and laundering the money through a non-existent business.
ACC Assistant Director Mohammad Shoaib Ibn Alam filed the case today (7 August) at the commission's headquarters in Dhaka after completing an investigation.
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According to the case, Saifuzzaman Chowdhury planned the illegal scheme to get a Tk25 crore loan from UCB's Jubilee Road branch in Chattogram. The loan was approved in the name of Crescent Traders, a fake business that did not actually exist. The money was later used to repay an earlier loan taken by another company linked to one of Saifuzzaman's associates.
The ACC says the real beneficiary was Aramit Group, a business owned by Saifuzzaman. The loan was routed through Syed Nurul Islam, who was named as the owner of Crescent Traders but is actually the cousin of an Aramit Group employee. The ACC says Syed Nurul Islam was just a front, while Saifuzzaman managed the scheme.
The fraudulent process began on 10 October 2019, when a current account was opened at UCB's Jubilee Road branch using fake trade licenses and forged documents. Two UCB officials, Mozibur Rahman and Maksud Ahmed, helped open the account without verifying the documents.
On 4 February 2020, a loan application for Tk25 crore was submitted under Crescent Traders. A UCB credit committee processed it, but fabricated reports showed the fake company as a real cement and steel trader.
Despite 17 negative observations from UCB's risk management, the bank's board approved the loan on 16 February 2020. The ACC says Saifuzzaman pressured the board, where his wife Rukmila Zaman was chairperson. Other board members named in the case include Bazlul Ahmed Babul, MA Sabur, Rokhsana Zaman Chowdhury, and Touhid Sipar Rafiquzzaman.
The full Tk25 crore loan was disbursed on 19 and 20 February 2020. Most of the money was transferred to Riverside Enterprise, a company that had defaulted on a previous UCB loan. The rest was withdrawn in cash by an Aramit Group employee.
The ACC calls this a planned scheme to recycle defaulted loans and launder money using a fake company. They say it is a serious abuse of power and bank procedures.
The accused face charges under several sections of the Penal Code, the Prevention of Corruption Act, and the Money Laundering Prevention Act. The ACC said more names may be added if new evidence emerges.
This is the third loan scam case filed against Saifuzzaman Chowdhury, his wife, and UCB officials in two weeks. Earlier cases also accuse them of embezzling and laundering crores through fake companies linked to the Aramit Group.
