Sadeeq Agro chairman arrested in money laundering case

Sadeeq Agro chairman arrested.

Dhaka, Mar 3 – Members of Criminal Investigation Department (CID) on Monday arrested chairman of Sadeeq Agro Imran Hossain in connection with a Tk 133 crore money laundering case.

Jashim Uddin Khan, (SS) of CID said a team of police arrested Imran at noon from the capital.

On July 1, last year, the the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) found seven banned Brahman calves and five cows in Sadeeq Agro’s farm located at Savar Vakurta Union Vanga Bridge area.

A nine-member ACC team, led by Assistant Director Abul Kalam Azad, conducted the drive at the farm and found seven banned Brahman calves and five cows, about 250 other cows, 12 camels and two horses.

ACC Assistant Director Abul Kalam Azad said customs officials had seized banned Brahman cows in 2021 from Dhaka airport imported by Sadeeq Agro. Then those cows were sent to the state-owned Central Cattle Breeding and Dairy Farm in Savar. In last Eid ul Fitr, these cows were slaughtered and the meat was sold in auction, he added.

ACC source said the Brahman cattle remained banned in Bangladesh since 2016. But in 2021 Sadeeq Agro imported 18 Brahman cows from the USA through Tarkish Airlines. Of them, one cow had died on the air. That time Sadeeq Agro owner Imran Hossain had failed to provide documents over the import.

Later, Sadeeq Agro submitted three fake documents on the Brahman cow import. These were a no objection certificate (NOC) over Cattle import, a letter from Department of Livestock Services (DLS) quarantine unit and a Permit letter on import cattle from the USA. - UNB