The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) on Thursday filed a new case against former Land Minister Saifuzzaman Chowdhury and 10 others for allegedly receiving Tk 52 crore by abusing his official powers and laundering the amount abroad.

ACC officials claimed that the former minister obtained the money by intimidating Thermex Group Managing Director Abdul Kadir Molla, a client of Saifuzzaman-controlled UCBL Bank. The funds were reportedly transferred to others and eventually laundered abroad.

The case, filed by ACC Deputy Assistant Director M. Sajib Ahmed, names several individuals, including former UCBL chairman and Saifuzzaman’s wife Rukmila Zaman, former bank director Syed Kamruzzaman, Aramit PLC’s Assistant General Manager Utpal Pal, and businessmen M. Abdul Aziz, Mohammad Jahangir Alam, Mohammad Misbahul Alam, M. Farid Uddin, M. Zahid, Nur Mohammad, and M. Yasinur Rahman.

ACC Deputy Director Akhtarul Islam told the media that the case was filed under Section 5(2) of the Corruption Prevention Act of 1947, Sections 4(2) and 4(3) of the Money Laundering Prevention Act of 2012, and Sections 162, 409, 420, and 109 of the Penal Code of 1860.

MN/