Fraud case: Ex-e-orange chief operator Rasel on 4-day remand

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Special Correspondent

Dhaka, Aug 30 - The police yesterday obtained a court order to quiz former e-orange Chief Operating Officer Nazmul Alam for four days in an embezzlement case. Dhaka’s Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Abu Bakr Siddique passed the order after hearing.

The Investigating Officer of the case, Gulshan Police Station Inspector Aminul Islam produced the suspect to court on Sunday and appealed to the court for a 10-day remand to interrogate him. The court heard the submission of the remand petition.

Lawyer Shantanu Dhar, who represented Rasel in the court appealed to the court to scrap the remand plea. 

“Nazmul Alam Rasel is himself a victim,” he said. “He left the job four months ago. He was replaced by Aman Ullah. And still, the case has been filed against him. He was also remanded for questioning twice. But there has been no progress in the case against him. He is a victim in this case and he is innocent.”

“He has been implicated in this case because certain people have personal enmity with him. But he left the job four months ago. Why should he be accused in the case? Why should he be put on remand? Rasel is not connected with this case. So, we request the remand petition be scrapped and he is granted bail.”

Gulshan Police Station Sub-Inspector Alamgir Hossain opposed the defence plea as a representative on behalf of the state. After hearing both sides, the magistrate granted police four days to interrogate Rasel.

On Aug 17, an e-orange customer, Taherul Islam, filed a case against the company, claiming he had been the victim of fraud.

The court then imposed travel restrictions on e-orange owner Sonia Mehjabin and the four other suspects in the case.

The case accuses the suspects of defrauding 100,000 customers of Tk 11 billion by taking advance payments for goods, but then not delivering them.

Customers who had yet to receive their purchased goods held a day-long protest in front of the e-orange Gulshan offices on Aug 16.

Sonia Mehjabin and her husband Masukur Rahman surrendered to the court on Aug 17 after the case was filed. Their request for bail was rejected and the two were sent to jail.

On Aug 18, police arrested COO Aman Ullah from the Gulshan area and seized 24 credit cards, Tk 1.6 million and a car from his possession.

On Aug 23, a court granted investigators a five-day remand to question Sonia Mehjabin, Masukur  Rahman and Aman Ullah in their custody.