ACC brings back interest from Koko's siphoned off money
The Anti-Corruption Commission has received Tk 15 lakh as interest of 2.04 million Singaporean dollars siphoned off by BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia's younger son Arafat Rahman Koko.
About three days back, the money was sent to an ACC account with Sonali Bank in the capital, ACC Chairman Ghulam Rahman told The Daily Star yesterday.
The commission earlier opened the Stolen Asset Recovery Account with the bank to receive the laundered amount that is more than Tk 13 crore. Koko and Ismail Hossain Saimon, son of BNP former minister late Akbar Hossain, had deposited the money in a Singaporean bank.
The anti-graft watchdog brought back the money on November 22 last year.
The money recovered would now be spent on anti-graft activities, Ghulam said.
This is the first money laundering case in which the government could recover an amount.
ACC Deputy Director Abu Syeed in March, 2009 sued Koko and Saimon for laundering more than Tk 20 crore -- Singaporean $28,84,603.15 and US $9,32,672.81.
Koko had received the amount from two foreign companies -- China Harbour Engineering Company Ltd and Siemens -- and a Bangladeshi expatriate in Dubai, Habibur Rahman.
Trying them in absentia, a Dhaka court on June 23 last year sentenced Koko and Saimon to six years' rigorous imprisonment and fined them around Tk 39 crore.
It also directed the authority to recover the laundered money.
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