Tarique and Mamun cleared of charges in money laundering case

The Appellate Division on Thursday acquitted BNP acting chairman Tarique Rahman and businessman Giasuddin Al Mamun in a money laundering case.

A four-member tribunal, led by Chief Justice Dr. Syed Refaat Ahmed, issued the order, as confirmed by the defendants' lawyer, Advocate Md Maksud Ullah.

Earlier, on Tuesday, the court set March 6 as the date for delivering its verdict after concluding the hearing on the appeal against their conviction.

On December 10 last year, the Appellate Division granted leave to appeal in response to a petition filed by Mamun.

The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) lodged the case on October 26, 2009, at Cantonment police station in Dhaka, alleging that Mamun laundered Tk20.41 crore to Singapore.

As per the case details, Mamun received the sum from Khadija Islam, chairman of Nirman Construction Company Ltd, in return for securing the contract for an 80MW power plant in Tongi.

The funds were transferred to a Citibank NA account in Singapore under Mamun’s name.

On July 6, 2010, the ACC formally charged Tarique and Mamun in the case, with charges being framed by the court on August 8, 2011.

During the trial, statements from 13 witnesses, including FBI agent Debra Laprovette, were recorded.

On November 17, 2013, Dhaka Special Judge’s Court 3 acquitted Tarique Rahman but sentenced Mamun to seven years in prison along with a Tk40 crore fine.

Following the verdict, the ACC filed an appeal on December 5, 2013, challenging Tarique Rahman’s acquittal.

The High Court accepted the appeal for hearing on January 19, 2014.

After reviewing both appeals, the High Court, on July 21, 2016, sentenced Tarique to seven years in prison and imposed a Tk20 crore fine while upholding Mamun’s conviction.

Mamun later challenged the High Court’s verdict in the Appellate Division.