Money laundering: Chargesheet filed in Kolkata court against PK Halder, 5 associates

India's Enforcement Directorate today (July 19, 2022) said it has filed a charge sheet in a special court in Kolkata against former NRB Global Bank MD and Bangladeshi national Proshanto Kumar Halder aka PK Halder and five of his associates in a money laundering case and attached their properties worth Rs 7.56 crore.

The court in Kolkata has taken cognizance of the charge sheet, the ED said, paving the way for the start of trial of PK Halder and his associates after their arrest from Ashok Nagar in West Bengal's North 24 Parganas district on May 14.

The attached properties include bungalows, residential flats, shares and cash lying in the bank accounts, the ED said, adding the attachment order was issued on July 9, our New Delhi correspondent reports.

Besides PK Halder, the charge sheet has named Imam Hossain, Amana Sultana, Swapan Maitra, Uttam Kumar Mistry, Pranesh Kumar Halder and others in respect to money laundering connected to the "offences of cross-border implication."

Proshanto Kumar Halder and the others have been booked under the stringent Prevention of Money Laundering Act 2002.

PK Halder was found to be accused in a bank fraud in Bangladesh and has been accused of siphoning off money outside that country to various countries.

The investigation by the ED revealed that the Bangladeshi nationals were in the possession of both Bangladeshi and Indian passports amongst various other identity documents issued by the government authorities of both India and Bangladesh.

Further investigation in the case is in progress, the ED said.