Fraud case: 5 top foodpanda officials secure anticipatory bail after arrest warrants issued

Five top foodpanda Bangladesh officials have secured anticipatory bail from the High Court after a Dhaka court issued arrest warrants against them over allegations of fraud, embezzlement, forgery and intimidation.

Foodpanda's parent company Delivery Hero Stores confirmed the matter in a statement today (23 September).

Earlier today, Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Jashita Islam issued arrest warrants against the accused.

The accused are foodpanda Bangladesh Co-founder and Managing Director Syeda Ambareen Reza; Co-founder and Director Zubair Siddiky; Pandamart Director Md Tabrej Khan; Head of Category Delara Farooq; and Senior Manager Mohammad Sajadul Haque.

However, the company said its employees had not engaged in conduct amounting to a criminal offence and that the warrants were a procedural step in the cases.

It said all five employees had already obtained bail from the High Court.

According to the company, the four criminal cases were filed by Shihab Mahmud Bashir, a businessman and proprietor of First Tele Sales Company, in connection with an ongoing commercial dispute involving dishonoured cheques and payments allegedly owed to Delivery Hero Stores.

The cases were retaliatory and aimed at shifting Bashir's own liability, while adding that the same police station had investigated all four cases, it added.

It further claimed that two investigation reports found no criminal elements against its employees and established that Delivery Hero Stores was owed money by the complainant.

According to court sources, Bashir filed four separate cases with a Dhaka court on 3 July last year, alleging the embezzlement of nearly Tk6 crore.

The Chief Metropolitan Magistrate's Court then directed Gulshan Police Station to investigate the cases and submit reports.

After completing the investigations, SI Md Mashiur Rahman submitted a report in one case, while SI Md Sakhawat Hossain submitted another in a separate case. The court accepted the reports today and issued arrest warrants against the accused.

According to the case statements, Bashir imported household and kitchen accessories, mobile accessories and other products through IPLE Electronics and supplied them to pandamart, a foodpanda affiliate.

Between June 2022 and September 2024, he supplied products worth around Tk2.5 crore through various purchase orders. Around Tk1.5 crore was paid, while nearly Tk1 crore remained unpaid, according to the complaints.

On 26 June last year, Bashir sent a representative to the accused's office to demand the outstanding payment, where the accused threatened him with physical harm and death.

Fake return challans were prepared by showing the supplied products as damaged in an attempt to reduce the amount payable to Bashir.

Around Tk10 lakh was deducted for VAT, taxes and advertising costs in violation of the terms of the agreement.