'Casino vault' busted

Tuesday 25th February 2020

A team of the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) yesterday seized Tk 26.55 crore in cash, FDRs worth of Tk 5.15 crore, one kg gold and foreign currencies from a house of former Awami League (AL) leader Enamul Haque and his brother Rupon in Dhaka's Wari area. Enamul is the former vice-president of the AL's Gendaria unit and Rupon was the joint general secretary of the same AL unit. The duo was arrested from Keraniganj on January 13 for allegedly running a casino illegally.

Tipped off, the RAB team, led by Executive Magistrate Sarwoer Alam, launched a drive at their house at Lalmohan Saha Street in Wari around 12:30am. This was stated by Lt Col Rakibul Hasan, commanding officer of RAB-3, at a press conference at Dholaipar, near the building, yesterday.

During the drive, the team seized the cash and FDRs, a kg of gold, and some casino chips from five steel safes on the ground floor of the six-storeyed building, the RAB officer said.

The elite force also seized 9,300 US dollars, 174 Malaysian ringgit, 5,350 Indian rupees, 1,195 Chinese yen, 11,560 Thai baht, and 100 UAE dirhams from the flat.

The illegal casino business had turned out to be the mythical Aladdin's magic lamp for brothers Enamul and Rupon, making them rich beyond their wildest dreams.

On January 13, Enamul and Rupon were arrested from a house in the Subadda area of Keraniganj on the outskirts of the capital, along with 12 mobile phone sets and Tk. 40 lakh in cash. The two were put on a four-day remand each in two money-laundering cases.

They were absconding since law enforcers raided their house at Gendaria in September last year and seized 8,072 grams of gold and Tk 5.5 crore in cash. Both the AL leaders were involved in casino business at the Wanderer's Club, according to RAB.

Four money-laundering cases were filed against them. The two brothers have 22 houses, mostly in the old part of the city, 91 bank accounts where they have Tk. 19 crore and five cars, said Imtiaz Ahmed, deputy inspector general (organised crime) of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID).

The two brothers bought at least 12 houses and six apartments in the last six years.

Locals said the brothers are intricately involved in the casino business. Enamul and Rupon also bagged important posts in ruling party organisations by greasing the palms of the party high-ups, they alleged.