A top company official sent to jail for ‘forging’ ministry letter

A Chattogram court yesterday sent a Bashundhara Group official to jail in a case over an alleged attempt to evade over Tk 50 crore of port charges by submitting a forged letter from the shipping ministry.

Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Sarkar Hasan Shahriar gave the order in the afternoon after police produced him before the court in connection with the case filed by the port authorities on Thursday night.

Suspect Md Foyezur Rahman, 42, is a senior general manager at Bashundhara Group, according to the First Information Report filed by Mohammad Rafiqul Islam, chief assistant of the Traffic Department at Chattogram Port.

The court ordered the police to produce the suspect before the court on June 19, 2025.

According to the case statement, "109 containers (equivalent to 214 TEUs) imported by Bashundhara Multi Steel Company Limited are currently awaiting release at the Chattogram Port. The accused, Mohammad Foyez, along with two to three unidentified accomplices, attempted to fraudulently obtain a 60% waiver on port storage charges payable to the Chattogram Port Authority (CPA).

"Foyez is accused of sending a forged ministry letter, bearing a forged signature of Nazrul Islam Azad, a senior official, using a mobile number belonging to Enamul Karim, Director (Transport), to mislead CPA officials. It was later confirmed by the Ministry of Shipping that no such letter had been issued."

Earlier on Thursday evening, plainclothes police detained Foyezur while boarding a domestic flight, airport intelligence sources said.

Soon after his arrest, Chattogram Metropolitan Police Commissioner Hasib Aziz told The Daily Star, "Having forged the seal and signature [of the ministry official], he [the suspect] tried to release a consignment from the port yard. Following the incident, he was held from the Chattogram Airport."

Contacted, MM Jasim Uddin, chief operating officer, Brand and Marketing, Bashundhara Group, said "It is highly unlikely for a corporate entity to be involved in such forgery. However, I am not sure what has happened here."

He added that the company remained closed during the weekly holidays, so he could not communicate with the higher authorities regarding the matter. "I expect to have more details within the next couple of days."

According to a press release issued by the Chattogram Port Authority after the arrest on Thursday night, "Bashundhara Multi Steel imported capital machinery in 204 TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent units) between June 12, 2024, and January 2, 2025. But the company failed to take timely delivery of the containers."

The releases added, "As of May 15, the outstanding storage charges owed by Bashundhara Multi Steel stood at about Tk 72 crore. The forged letter sought to illegally waive nearly Tk 50 crore of that amount.

"The company submitted a letter to the Chattogram Port Authority chairman on May 12, requesting a waiver of storage rent for imported goods. The letter, purportedly signed by the deputy secretary of the shipping ministry, Nazrul Islam Azad, claimed that 60% of the storage charges for the goods had been waived."

The release added that the port officials found inconsistencies in the letter and contacted the ministry to verify its authenticity.

"In a written response on May 14, Nazrul Islam Azad stated that no such letter had been issued by his office," the release said.

Upon review, discrepancies were found in the language of the forged letter, along with mismatches in the signature and contact information of the ministry official provided.

Shipping ministry Deputy Secretary Nazrul Islam Azad, whose signature was allegedly forged, told The Daily Star on Thursday night, "When information about a fake office order was brought to our attention, the ministry issued a directive regarding the issue. The authorities are taking appropriate legal action against those involved in the issuance of the fake order."

When a consignment arrives, Chattogram Port Authority collects only storage rent of the imported goods while the Chattogram Custom House collects import duties upon examination and assessment reports.

The port authorities have yet to disclose the total value of the goods imported by Bashundhara Multi Steel between June 12, 2024, and January 2, 2025 that are still at the port yard.

Under the Chattogram Port Act 2022, partial or full waivers of storage charges may be granted, but must follow due procedures.

Chattogram Customs data show that at least 28,900 tonnes of goods imported by Bashundhara Multi Steel company are currently awaiting unloading. Of these, the company has so far submitted a bill of entry for only 240 tonnes of goods in eight containers.

According to the port rules, no storage rent is charged for the first four days after a container is unloaded from a vessel.

For a 20-foot loaded container, the port charges $6 per day for the first seven days after the free period, $12 per day from the 12th to the 20th day and $24 per day from the 21st day onward.

For a 40-foot container, the charges double at each stage.