BB reserve heist: Draft charge sheet names 64 individuals, entities

Former Bangladesh Bank Governor Dr Atiur Rahman, along with 64 domestic and foreign individuals and entities, has been named as an accused in the case relating to the theft of funds from Bangladesh Bank’s foreign exchange reserves. The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) has prepared a draft charge sheet and case docket in the widely discussed case and submitted them to the Attorney General’s Office for legal opinion.

According to sources familiar with the documents, a total of 64 individuals and organisations from seven countries were involved in what is regarded as one of the largest financial scandals in Bangladesh’s history. Among them are 36 individuals and entities from the Philippines, 10 from Bangladesh, two from North Korea, three from China, eight from Sri Lanka, one from Japan and four from India.

The 150-page draft charge sheet contains forensic analyses, evidence collected through international cooperation, and detailed accounts of the complex money-laundering network involved in the case. Supporting evidence comprises approximately 10,000 pages of documentation.

Crime analysts believe that if the charge sheet is swiftly submitted to the court and trial proceedings commence, it will send a strong message against financial crimes in the country.

A CID source said that, in addition to Dr Atiur Rahman, the Bangladeshi accused include Anis A Khan, K M Abdul Wadud, Shubankar Saha, Rezaul Karim, Zobayer Bin Huda, A F M Asaduzzaman, Mezbaul Haque, Abul Kasem and Md Sultan Masud Ahmed. The Indian accused are Pritham Reddy, Sudheendra Athresh, Neelavannan Madukkur Anandan and Rashe Asthana.

Asked about the latest status of the investigation, Additional Superintendent of Police Al Mamun of the CID’s Financial Crime Unit, the most recent investigating officer in the case, said: “The investigation is almost complete. We have prepared an accurate draft charge sheet based entirely on evidence. However, our analysis is still ongoing. Further steps will be taken after receiving the Attorney General’s legal opinion. We expect that more than 60 names will appear in the charge sheet. It is not possible to say more at this stage.”

However, sources said the CID is keen to submit a final charge sheet that is completely accurate. Officials involved in the case have worked extensively to collect and analyse a large volume of information and evidence from both domestic and international sources.

The previous investigating officer was Additional Superintendent of Police Md Farhad Kabir. Between May and December 2025, he gathered key forensic evidence and identified the principal accused. He stated that, following forensic analysis and with assistance from the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), North Korean hacker Park Jin Hyok and the Lazarus Group under his leadership were identified as the main perpetrators. During the same period, investigators also traced the movement of the $81 million laundered through the Philippines’ Rizal Commercial Banking Corporation (RCBC).

According to CID sources, in February 2016 unidentified hackers sent fraudulent messages through the SWIFT payment system and stole $101 million from Bangladesh Bank’s reserves held at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. Nearly 40 days later, on 15 March, Bangladesh Bank filed a case under the Money Laundering Prevention Act with Motijheel Police Station. The CID has been investigating the case since the outset.

On 11 March last year, the interim government formed a six-member review committee headed by former Law Adviser Dr Asif Nazrul. The investigation was finalised under the committee’s supervision. Subsequently, on 1 April this year, the draft charge sheet was prepared and sent to the Attorney General’s Office for legal review.

From August 2023 to January 2025, the case was investigated by Abdullah Yasin, then an Additional Superintendent of Police with the CID. During this period, there was an initiative to transfer the case to the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC), but it was not implemented. Additional Superintendent of Police Mong Thowai Marma then led the investigation from February to May 2025.

The first investigating officer in the case, and now Additional Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Raihan Uddin Khan, conducted the investigation from March 2016 until August 2023. Through the Mutual Legal Assistance Request (MLAR) process, he gathered information regarding the involvement of 64 domestic and foreign individuals and entities and achieved significant progress, including the recovery of part of the stolen funds.

Reflecting on seven years of investigation, he said: “Because the case was filed 40 days after the theft, it was extremely difficult for us to access the actual crime scene. By then, some foreign and local unauthorised individuals had already entered the scene. Despite this, the CID team collected the necessary evidence from home and abroad with great professionalism. Important testimony and evidence were obtained from the Philippines, India and Japan. We also recorded the statement of Maya Deguito, branch manager of RCBC in the Philippines, who acknowledged the involvement of several foreign accused.”

It is understood that during the investigation Raihan Uddin Khan was repeatedly pressured to exclude the names of Bangladeshi suspects from the charge sheet. However, because he refused to remove anyone’s name without regard to the evidence, he was removed from the investigation in August 2023.

Sources said that on 1 November 2020 an inter-ministerial meeting on the reserve theft was held in a conference room at the Ministry of Home Affairs. Present were then Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal, Law Minister Anisul Huq, the Home Secretary, the Secretary of the Financial Institutions Division, the Governor of Bangladesh Bank, the head of the Bangladesh Financial Intelligence Unit (BFIU), the CID chief and other senior officials. At the meeting, they allegedly instructed investigators to submit the charge sheet without naming Bangladeshi offenders. When he refused, Raihan Uddin Khan and supervising officer Superintendent of Police Mostafa Kamal were reportedly asked to leave the meeting.

It is also reported that Mohammad Ali joined as CID chief in August 2022 and subsequently held several meetings on the case. From the beginning, he allegedly maintained that no Bangladeshi suspect should be named in the charge sheet. After the forensic report was received on 8 April 2023, he reportedly proposed having the report translated into English and provided to a foreign law firm. However, investigators believed the report should not have been shared. In July 2023, he allegedly exerted pressure on investigators several times to submit a charge sheet excluding Bangladeshi suspects.

According to sources, Raihan Uddin Khan responded that evidence had been collected against all offenders and that it would be impossible to exclude anyone’s name. He was subsequently removed from the case on 5 August 2023 and transferred to the CID office in Joypurhat District. Later that month, he was transferred again to the Anti-Terrorism Unit (ATU). After formally handing over all case files and documents, he joined the ATU. He later learned that the forensic report had been supplied to a foreign law firm in October 2023, a move that some involved individuals believe was inappropriate. It is also understood that he continued to contribute to the case as a supervising officer from March 2025 until 15 February 2026.

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During a crucial phase of the investigation, the CID was headed by Additional Inspector General of Police Md Shibgat Ullah. He said that through relentless effort the investigation team had collected and verified nearly all relevant evidence before preparing the draft charge sheet. According to him, the document clearly outlines the nature of the offences and the liabilities of all domestic and foreign accused parties.

Meanwhile, sources within the review committee led by Dr Asif Nazrul stated that the interim government formed the high-level committee to advance a case that had remained unresolved for more than seven years. The investigation identified 10 domestic individuals and entities as being involved. Attempts were allegedly made to remove their names from the case, but due to the vigilance of the officials concerned, those efforts failed.

With the preparation of a draft charge sheet nearly a decade after the reserve theft, expectations have grown that judicial proceedings in one of the most prominent financial scandals in Bangladesh’s history will finally begin.

Source: Kaler Kantho