Opposition leader’s son to serve six years in jail on graft charge

Dhaka: A Dhaka court on Thursday handed down six years of imprisonment to main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) chief Khaleda Zia’s younger son Arafat Rahman Koko for siphoning off over Dh9.90 million abroad.

Judge Mohammad Mozammel Hossain of the Special Judge’s Court handed down an identical sentence to ex-minister Akbar Hossain’s son Esmail Hossain Saimon after trying the both in absentia and ordered officials concerned to take steps to recover the amount they siphoned out of the country.

The court also fined Dh19.22 million each of them.

“Their punishment will be effective from the day of their arrest or surrender,” the judgement said.

The trial of the two began in January this year a moth after they were indicted on a money laundering charge.

Koko, now living in Bangkok, was arrested on September 2007 on graft charges under a massive anti-graft campaign under emergency rules during the past army backed interim regime and was paroled for treatment abroad in July 2008.

Simon was declared fugitive since he was on the run after the installation of the past army-backed government in January 2007 after a presidential declaration of state of emergency.

According to the charge sheet Koko had underhand dealings with China Harbour Engineering Company Ltd and German telecom giant Siemens for setting up New Mooring Container Terminal in southeastern port city of Chittagong for supplying and installing equipment for the state-owned Teletalk mobile phone operator respectively.

This charge came as the Anti Corruption Commission (ACC) carried out the investigation teaming up with United States and British authorities to recover millions of dollars stashed by Koko and several other high-profile suspects in Singapore banks.

Singaporean authorities in December 2008 froze assets worth 1.6 million US dollars associated with a company Koko established in 2004.

The World Bank recently released a publication mentioning the alleged embezzlement of several million dollars by Koko as “an example of stealing national assets”.

The publication said Siemens pleaded guilty to the charges of conspiracy and violations of books and records and internal controls provisions in a plea agreement that resulted in a $450 million.

The World Bank document also noted that the US Department of Justice stating in 2009 filed a confiscation action against bribery proceeds paid in Singapore, with US currency by a foreign company to the son of the former prime minister of Bangladesh.