Singapore Recovery

A Dhaka court asked the Bangladeshi Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) to submit an inquiry report by April 19 2009 on the money laundering case against Arafat Rahman Koko.

“The allegation that Arafat Rahman…has illegally sent abroad 28,84,603.15 [sic] Singaporean dollars and 9,32,672.81 [sic] US dollars to hide his illegally earned money and his illegal source of income has been primarily proven. This is a punishable offence under section 4(2) of the Money Laundering Prevention Act 2009,” the ACC official said in the concluding paragraph of the five-page first information report (FIR).

In the case, the ACC pinpoints Koko’s dealings with China Harbour Engineering Company Ltd over a Tk 351 crore (US 51 million) contract for constructing the New Mooring Container Terminal and Siemens over a Tk 239 crore (US 34 million) contract for supplying and setting up equipments for Teletalk mobile phone company.

The total amount– 2.8 million Singaporean dollars (US 1.8 million)–was deposited in account number 1093101397 of United Overseas Bank against account holder ZASZ Trading and Consulting Pte Ltd at 9 Changy South Streeet of Singapore. Koko and local businessman Lim Seu Chang jointly own this company.

Additionally on November 16, 2007, Koko deposited US $932,000 with this bank in account number 352015542-0 of Fairhill Consulting Pte, which Koko owns. The investigation found that Koko himself withdrew and deposited money from his accounts with United Overseas Bank through checks.

But how Koko acquired the amount or who gave the money or what was the purpose are not clear to the ACC.

The Singaporean government has frozen the accounts and sent necessary documentation to the ACC.