Hallmark scam: Masterminds far away

 
The Hallmark scam shook the banking sector of Bangladesh which has been one of the biggest financial frauds in the country's history. The perpetrators directly associated with the scam plundered around 4 thousand crore taka from Sonali Bank Limited through fraudulence and forgery which shocked and astounded the entire country's people ten years ago.

However, the prosecution of the above financial racket has not been yet accomplished. Three individuals have been sentenced to life imprisonment in one case while taking evidences from witnesses has not been yet completed in the remaining cases. Hallmark Chairman Jesmin Islam is right now in Kashimpur Women's Prison. The company's Managing Director Tanvir Mahmud is at present in Kashimpur Prison Part 2. Tanvir Mahmud's brother-in-law and Hallmark General Manager Tushar Ahmed is imprisoned inside Munshiganj District Jail.

A Dhaka court delivered a verdict on 19 March 2024, sentencing nine individuals, including the Managing Director of Hallmark Group Tanvir Mahmud, and his wife Jasmine Islam, who serves as the group's chairman, to life imprisonment. However, the masterminds of the scam could not be yet nabbed. There were some other infamous scams by Bismillah Group, Anon Tex, Thermax Group etcetera but nobody knows what actions have been taken to this end by regulators.

The sentencing came in light of their involvement in a case related to the infamous Tk4,000 crore Sonali Bank loan scam on false documents.
Tanvir and Jasmine were also awarded a fine of Tk5 crore under Section 409 of the Penal Code. At the same time, seven years rigorous imprisonment and a fine of Tk25,000 have been given to them under Section 420.

Dhaka Special Judge's Court 1 Judge Abul Kashem passed the verdict. After delivering the verdict, the judge observed that the highest penalty for such embezzlement should have been death sentence

Additionally, Sonali Bank's former managing director Humayun Kabir and eight others have received various prison terms.

It should be noted that the Board of Directors (BoD) of Hallmark Group cannot avoid liability for the above fraud because all decisions are made the members of the board of directors of any financial company or business conglomerate.

Now questions have emerged what about the other scams that ravaged banks and financial institutions. There is an English proverb "Justice delayed, justice denied." If it takes too long to prosecute financial culprits, it fails to establish instances of exemplary punishment. Economists have stated that the inactivity and lack of quick response from Bangladesh Bank, Bangladesh Financial Intelligence Unit (BFIU) and other regulatory authorities enable fraudsters and corrupt thugs to run away from Bangladesh and for the same reason good governance and accountability could not be yet constituted in the financial and banking sectors of Bangladesh.

In 2012, 11 cases were filed against Hallmark Group owners, officers and officials of Sonali Bank in connection with the embezzlement of about Tk4,000 crore from Sonali Bank. The verdict came in one of the cases. The 10 remaining cases are pending trial.

While making observations on the 284-page judgement, the judge said, "The case is a one of a kind incident in the history of banking. The court views that criminals who consider the deposits of the country's people, the banking system, and the economy as a joke, should be given the death penalty.

"But the maximum sentence in the relevant law is life imprisonment. So, in this situation, it has been decided to award life imprisonment to those directly involved with the crime."

Among those sentenced to life imprisonment are Tanvir's brother-in-law Hallmark Group general manager Tushar Ahmed, T and Brothers Director Taslim Hasan, Max Spinning Mills owner Mir Zakaria, Paragon Group Managing Director Saiful Islam Raja, Nakshi Knit managing directors Abdul Malek , Abdul Motin, and Taslim Hasan.

Eight others who were handed different terms in the same case are - Saval Hemayetpur's Tantuljhora Union Parishad (UP) Chairman Md Jamal Uddin Sarkar, Sonali Bank Senior Executive Officer (Dhanmondi Branch) Meherunnesa Merry, Sonali Bank (head office) former general managers Nani Gopal Nath and Mir Mohidur Rahman, former managing director Humayun Kabir, Deputy Managing Director (DMD) Mainul Haque, Deputy General Manager (DGM) Safi Uddin, and AGM Md Kamrul Hossain Khan.

UP Chairman Jamal Uddin has been sentenced to five years in prison, while the others have received 10-year prison terms each.
Jamal Uddin and Altaf Hossain are out on bail. Saiful Islam, Abdul Matin, Humayun Kabir, Nani Gopal Nath, Taslim, Saiful Hasan, Meherunnesa, and Zakaria are still fugitives.

Meanwhile, Tanvir, Tushar, Jasmine, and the remaining eight accused are in custody.

Tanvir and Jasmine are accused of embezzling Tk16.5 crore after taking a loan of Tk525.62 crore in the name of a non-existent Max Spinning Mills.
They were accused of embezzling the money between 18 September 2011 and 30 April 2012 by opening fake LCs (Letters of Credit) in the name of 11 Hallmark Group companies to pay for imported goods.

Following the investigation, on 7 October 2013, the investigating officer filed a charge sheet against the 17 accused in 11 cases. These 11 cases were transferred to Special Judge's Court 1 in Dhaka for trial.

Later, on 17 February and 27 March 2016, the trial court framed charges against the accused.

Bangladesh Bank's former Governor Dr. Salehuddin Ahmed said that financial regulators are not being able to play their role in the right way for mysterious reasons which is why big scams are taking place. Dr. Salehuddin Ahmed also blamed some influential politicians, immoral bureaucrats and a few large business groups for enforcing undue pressure on banks.

Former adviser to caretaker government Dr. Wahid Uddin Mahmud said that scammers escape from Bangladesh before the authorities can take actions against them. This is a big question how it happens, Dr. Wahid Uddin Mahmud further said. He urged the government and the regulatory institutions to keep away from compromising with bankers, businessmen and corrupt people. The members of the board of directors of companies like Hallmark cannot avoid liability for the frauds committed by their organization, Dr. Wahid Uddin Mahmud commented.

Professor Anu Muhammad of Jahangirnagar University said, "Bangladesh's banks and financial institutions have entered a blind alley. There is apparently no hope. Huge sums of money are being siphoned away every now and then and these things are also hitting news headlines but neither the regulators nor the law and order forces can perform their duty effectively."

Dr. Iftekharuzzaman, Executive Director of Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB) said, "The problem is the Bangladesh government does not want to admit that there is enormous corruption in the country whereas terrible occurrences associated with graft, embezzlement, forgery, illegal wealth, money laundering and so on are appearing on first pages of different newspapers. Corruption obstructs development activities. Corruption and progress cannot go ahead hand in hand."