Tk85 lakh embezzled from housewife’s account; case filed against 9, including DBBL officials

A case has been filed against nine people, including officials of Dutch-Bangla Bank and executives of Global Golden Jute and Craft Ltd, over the alleged embezzlement of Tk85 lakh from the bank account of a housewife in Dhaka.

Nargis Akter, a customer of Dutch-Bangla Bank’s Dania branch in Shanir Akhra, filed the case before the court of Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Mohammad Ashraful Haque today (4 November).

The court recorded her statement and directed the Police Bureau of Investigation (PBI) to investigate the allegations and submit a report, Nargis Akter’s lawyer, Majedur Rahman, confirmed.

The accused are Mohit Morshed, assistant vice-president and deputy manager of Dutch-Bangla Bank’s Dania branch; Sourav Saha, assistant officer; Md Rafiqul Islam, remittance officer; Md Golam Kibria, vice-president and branch manager; Mohammad Mahbub Hossain, chairman of Global Golden Jute and Craft Ltd; Md Hakim Ali Sardar, managing director; Kazi Enamul Kabir, manager; Shawkat Hasan; and the company itself. Several unidentified individuals have also been named in the complaint.

According to the case statement, Nargis is an illiterate housewife who deposited Tk1,11,85,319 in her account at the bank’s Dania branch. The money came from the sale of her land and car, along with savings from house and shop rentals.

As she cannot read or write, bank officials usually helped her fill out cheques and deposit money, the complaint said.

It alleged that on 17 September, when Nargis visited the bank to withdraw Tk5 lakh, the accused fraudulently obtained an additional cheque from her cheque book and took her signatures on several documents, claiming they were required to open a Deposit Pension Scheme (DPS).

When she visited the bank on 4 October to check her account balance, she was told that only Tk3,35,204 remained in the account.

After asking about the missing money, she was informed by bank official Mohit Morshed that Tk85 lakh had been paid to Global Golden Jute and Craft Ltd through a cheque dated 23 September, using a ‘Positive Pay Instruction’ form.

The complaint further stated that Nargis had not visited the bank on 23 September or issued any cheque to the company.

It alleged that the accused forged her signature on the cheque obtained on 17 September, filled in the amount of Tk85 lakh and prepared a Positive Pay Instruction form to transfer the money to the company’s account at Pubali Bank PLC’s Rajbari branch through cheque clearance.

The complaint also alleged that Shawkat Hasan subsequently withdrew the entire Tk85 lakh in cash from Pubali Bank’s Principal Branch on 28 September on behalf of the company and misappropriated the money.

When contacted, Mohit Morshed, assistant vice-president and deputy manager of Dutch-Bangla Bank’s Dania branch, declined to comment further.

“Please speak to the senior manager. I do not want to make any further comments,” he told TBS.