In a significant legal development, Mohammad Shahed, the Chairman of Regent Group, has been handed a three-year prison sentence by a Dhaka court for amassing illicit assets valued at Tk 1.69 crore.
Presided over by Judge Prodip Kumar Roy of Dhaka Special Judge Court-7, the sentencing took place with Shahed present in the courtroom. The verdict also includes a fine of Tk 1 lakh, which is mandated to be deposited into the government treasury within the stipulated 60 working days. The case against Shahed was initiated on March 1, 2021, when Farid Ahmed Patwary, Deputy Director of the Anti-Corruption Commission, filed charges of his alleged involvement in the acquisition of unlawful wealth.
Following thorough investigations, the Anti-Corruption Commission presented a chargesheet against Shahed on February 2, 2022. The formal charges were subsequently framed on April 17 of the same year. Notably, Shahed was apprehended by the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) on July 15, 2020, near the border area of Satkhira, leading to his confinement in jail since then. Adding to his legal woes, Shahed had previously been sentenced to life imprisonment on September 28, 2020, in a separate arms-related case.
