ACC files case against Mercantile Bank directors

The Anti-Corruption Commission yesterday filed a case against four directors of Mercantile Bank over embezzlement of Tk 8.60 crore under the guise of a loan -- 18 years after the incident took place.

The accused directors are: Md Anwarul Haque, Akram Hossain (Humayun), M Amanullah and Mohd Selim.

In an investigation, the ACC found the four directors had colluded with eight officials of the bank's main branch for the loan that was taken mortgaging government-owned land.

The loan was taken in the name of Patrick Fashions in 2000 by its managing director, Kazi Farhad Hossain.

Hossain proposed to mortgage two lands of 12.75 katha in total -- one of 5.50 katha and another of 7.25 katha -- under Gulshan thana. The proposed properties though were acquired by the government in 1965 and the two bank officials who made the site visit concealed the information to the bank.

Subsequently, Rabiul Islam, then assistant vice-president, and Nob-Us-Selim, then senior vice-president, recommended the bank's high-ups to approve the loan, which the then executive committee acted on -- without examining the documents.

Later, the client never made any payments and the loan then became classified.

“The case was filed over embezzlement of Tk 10.83 crore, including charged interest from the bank,” said Pranab Kumar Bhattacharya, public relations officer of ACC.

The eight officials, who are still with Mercantile Bank, were also named in the case filed with the Motijheel police station.

Contacted, AKM Shaheed Reza, chairman of Mercantile Bank, said: “The case was revealed after 18 years.”

The bank filed the case against the borrower and managed to recover some portion of the loan.

He went on to vouch for the accused directors, saying they are named in the case only because of their attendance at the board meeting.

“But personally they are not involved with the embezzlement.”