ACC Asks BB to Freeze BB Officials' Locker Deposits

A letter from ACC Director Kazi Sayemuzzaman, sent on Tuesday, urges the governor to implement the necessary measures. The request was supported by Finance Adviser Dr. Salehuddin Ahmed, who agreed on the need to freeze the lockers during a meeting with ACC Chairman Dr. Mohammad Abdul Momen on January 30.

The ACC's letter outlines a troubling discovery made by its officials. During an investigation, officials found assets including 55,000 euros, $170,000, fixed deposits worth Tk 70 lakh, and over one kilogram of gold in three sealed cans belonging to former Bangladesh Bank (BB) Deputy Governor Sitangshu Kumar Sur Chowdhury. These assets had not been reported in Sur's income tax returns, the letter noted.

Further inspection of the locker registers revealed additional sealed safes belonging to other BB officials, prompting the ACC to take action.

On January 27, a Dhaka court authorized the arrest of Sur in connection with a money laundering case filed by the ACC. The case, filed in December 2018, involves suspicious transactions of Tk 13.5 crore allegedly amassed illegally by Hallmark Group employees Tusher Ahmed, Mohammad Aslam Uddin, and Sumon Bhuiyan, who transferred the funds to conceal their source.

Sur was arrested by the ACC, with assistance from the Detective Branch (DB) of police, on January 14. During a subsequent search of Sur’s house in Dhaka's Dhanmondi, authorities recovered documents worth Tk 16.25 lakh and fixed deposits totaling Tk 4.5 crore.

In response to the ACC’s request on January 23, Bangladesh Bank confirmed that Sur had stored personal valuables in three of its lockers. As per the bank's policies, the personal belongings of both active and retired employees are kept in sealed packets or boxes in the bank’s lockers for 20 years from the date of deposit.

Sur retired as the Deputy Governor of Bangladesh Bank in January 2018.