Four more witnesses testify in graft case against former IGP Benazir Ahmed

A Dhaka court on Tuesday recorded the testimonies of four more witnesses in the graft case against former Inspector General of Police (IGP) Benazir Ahmed, who is facing allegations of corruption, unexplained wealth and money laundering.

Judge Abdullah Al Mamun of Dhaka Special Judge Court-5 recorded the depositions and fixed July 1 for the next hearing in the high-profile corruption case filed by the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC).

The witnesses who testified were Md Sohel Mia, Head Assistant at the Tax Commissioner’s Office in Narsingdi; Md Riazul Islam, Sub-Registrar of Sonargaon; Asef Aynan Bakhsh, Sub-Divisional Engineer of the Public Works Department; and Sirajul Haque, Deputy Director of the ACC.

Confirming the development, ACC prosecutor Mir Ahmed Ali Salam said eight of the 28 prosecution witnesses have now testified in the corruption case against former IGP Benazir Ahmed.

The trial formally began on May 3 this year after the court framed charges against Benazir Ahmed. Earlier, on March 8, the court took cognisance of the charge sheet and issued an arrest warrant against the former IGP Benazir Ahmed.

The ACC filed the case on 15 December 2024, accusing ex-IGP Benazir Ahmed of acquiring assets beyond known sources of income, concealing wealth and laundering money through various financial transactions.

According to the charge sheet submitted by ACC Deputy Director Hafizul Islam on November 30 last year, Benazir Ahmed declared immovable assets worth Tk6.45 crore and movable assets worth Tk5.74 crore in his wealth statement.

However, investigators allegedly found immovable assets worth Tk7.52 crore and movable assets worth Tk8.15 crore in his name, bringing the total value of his assets to Tk15.68 crore.

The ACC investigation found that his lawful income amounted to Tk6.59 crore and that his net savings, after expenses, stood at Tk4.63 crore. As a result, the anti-graft watchdog alleged that the former IGP Benazir Ahmed accumulated Tk11.04 crore in wealth beyond known sources of income.

The charge sheet further alleges that Benazir Ahmed concealed the source, nature and ownership of the funds and subsequently invested, transferred and converted the money through multiple bank accounts, business entities and joint-stock companies.

The case is one of several corruption and asset accumulation investigations involving the former police chief currently being pursued by the ACC.