Fake Covid-19 certificates: JKG Health Care Chairman Dr Sabrina arrested

Police today arrested JKG Health Care Chairman Dr Sabrina Arif Chowdhury in a case filed for issuing fake Covid-19 test certificates.

Police called Dr Sabrina, wife of JKG Health Care Chief Executive Officer Ariful Chowdhury who was arrested earlier for the same allegation, at Tejgaon Police Deputy Commissioner's office around 1:00 pm for interrogation, police said.

"She was called for interrogation. After questioning for three hours, we showed her arrested in the case as she could not give satisfactory answers to the queries of the investigators," Harun-Ur-Rashid, deputy commissioner of Tejgaon Division Police, told The Daily Star.

Dr Sabrina is working as a registrar doctor in the National Heart Institute and Hospital. Although she is working in a government organisation, she gave several interviews to media as the chairman of JKG Health Care, according to police.

She, however, denied her post as JKG Chairman after the scam came to light, police said.

Meanwhile, the health ministry today suspended Dr Sabrina Arif Chowdhury in connection with the case.

The ministry today issued the suspension order signed by Md Abdul Mannan, secretary of the ministry.

"Being a government employee, Dr Sabrina has remained in the post of Chairman of JKG Health Care without permission from the ministry and embezzled money," the letter said, adding she was suspended as her acts are punishable according to government employee act 2018.

The suspension will be in force as early as possible, the letter reads.

On June 24, police arrested Dr Sabrina's husband Ariful and four others from Dhaka for allegedly delivering fake coronavirus test reports without carrying out any test.

Police said they used to collect samples from people's homes, even though they have no laboratory.

After collecting samples, they would go home and prepare fake certificates on their laptops. They would write "negative" or "positive" on the certificates depending on the patient's symptoms, police said.

If the patient had any Covid-19 symptoms, they would write positive and if not, they would write the report as negative.

They used to print reports on the official pads of the health directorate and the IEDCR, according to police.

Apart from Ariful, other arrestees are -- Humayun Kabir and his wife Tanzina Patwari, Sayeed Chowdhury and Alman.

Humayun and Tanjina are former employees of JKG Health Care while Sayeed and Alman were still working there.

In a press statement today, the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) said it gave permission to JKG Group to set up booths and collect samples of coronavirus patients as its coordinator Ariful Chowdhury went to DGHS and claimed that his organisation was able to set up booths -- like in South Korea -- to help the government deal with the Covid-19 crisis.

But after receiving allegations, DGHS cancelled the permission of JKG's sample collection, it reads.