Former Somoy TV MD Ahmed Zobayer sent to jail in fraud case

A Dhaka court today (18 June) has sent former managing director (MD) of Somoy Television, Ahmed Zobayer, to jail after rejecting his bail petition in a case filed over allegations of fraud and forgery.

At the same time, the court granted bail to three other accused persons - Ahmed Rafid Kader Rivu, Sheikh Mahmud Yasin and Sunny Chowdhury - who surrendered before the court seeking bail.

Dhaka Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Md Zakir Hossain passed the order, according to court sources.

Yesterday, (17 June), the court issued arrest warrants against six accused, including Zobayer, after they failed to appear before the court within the stipulated deadline. Four of the accused surrendered today and sought bail.

The lawsuit was filed against six individuals on charges of fraud, criminal breach of trust and document forgery.

On 10 May, the court issued a summons directing the accused to appear before it by 17 June. However, as none of them appeared on the scheduled date, the court subsequently issued arrest warrants against them.

The two other accused named in the warrant are Zobayer's wife, Shamima Sultana Chowdhury and their child, Saraf Nawar Joyita.

During the hearing, defence lawyer Farhad Hossain argued the case was entirely false, baseless and filed with the intention of harassment.

He told the court that the complainant, Mobarak Hossain, had lodged the case out of personal vendetta stemming from an ongoing dispute over the ownership and management of Somoy Media Limited.

The defence further claimed that there was no specific evidence of fraud or embezzlement against the accused and assured the court that they would fully cooperate with the investigation and trial proceedings.

After hearing arguments from both sides, the court rejected Ahmed Zobayer's bail plea and ordered that he be sent to jail, while granting bail to the three other accused who surrendered before the court.