ACC wants wealth statements of Benazir, Matiur in 21 days

The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has issued notices to former inspector general of police (IGP) Benazir Ahmed and National Board of Revenue (NBR) official Matiur Rahman, seeking their financial statements within 21 days.

“The notices have been issued to learn if members of these two families have more assets beyond those already confiscated,” ACC Secretary Khorsheda Yasmin told the media Tuesday afternoon.

On June 30, sources at the antigraft watchdog revealed that they sought information on the two families’ assets from the NBR, Bangladesh Financial Intelligence Unit (BFIU), Directorate of Registration, Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC), Bangladesh Road Transport Authority, and Office of the Registrar of Joint Stock Company.

Khorsheda said their initial investigations found that Benazir Ahmed, his wife Zeeshan Mirza, their daughters Farhin Rishta binte Benazir and Tahsin Raisa binte Benazir hold substantial amounts of wealth beyond their declared sources of income.

The commission also has information that the family maintains more assets in home and abroad. Hence, the notices have been issued asking them to file separate asset statements.

Recently, a media outlet reported a huge wealth of the former police chief and pointed out a clear inconsistency with his source of income. It prompted the ACC to launch an investigation into the family.

The ACC investigation uncovered extensive assets of the Benazir family, including 697 bighas of land, shares in 19 companies, 12 flats in Dhaka, savings certificates worth Tk 3 million, 33 bank accounts, and three beneficiary owners (BO) accounts for share trading.

A court later froze these assets in response to an appeal from the anti-graft body.

Similar notices have been issued to the family members of former NBR officer Matiur Rahman. Apart from him, his wife Laila Kaniz, son Ahmed Toufiqur Rahman, daughter Farzana Rahman, and second wife Shammi Akhter have been asked to submit their financial statements.

He came to light when an image went viral on social media showing his son to order a giant sacrificial goat at a whooping cost of Tk 1.5 million before Eid-ul-Azha.