DHAKA: Bangladeshi opposition leader and former Bangladesh Prime Minister Khaleda Zia’s elder son Tarique Rahman was on Thursday handed a seven-year imprisonment and fine in a money laundering case.
The High Court overturned a trial court’s verdict acquitting the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) leader in a Taka 20.41 crore money laundering case, bdnews24 reported. The court also slapped a Taka 200 million fine on Rahman, who lives in London.
The bench of justices Enayetur Rahim and Amir Hossain gave its decision on Thursday on an appeal by the anti-graft body — Anti Corruption Commission (ACC). Rahman’s close business associate Giasuddin-Al-Mamun was also sentenced to seven years in prison and fined Taka 400 million, bdnews24 reported. The ACC filed the case against Rahman and Mamun in October, 2009 for siphoning off the money to Singapore between 2003 and 2007. Rahman’s lawyer Zainul Abedin denied that his client was involved in money laundering. He said the defence will scrutinise whether there was any chance of an appeal.A pro-BNP lawyer, told The Daily Star that Rahman cannot move appeal as he was a fugitive in the eye of law and living in London on parole for eight years.
