Former Agrani Bank Official Sentenced to 8 Years for Embezzlement

A Chittagong court on Tuesday sentenced a former Agrani Bank official to eight years of rigorous imprisonment for embezzling Tk 1.34 million through fraudulent remittance records.

Chittagong Divisional Special Judge Mizanur Rahman delivered the verdict, also acquitting three other individuals—Mohammad Rezat Hossain, Hamde Rabbi Munna, and Ripayan Barua—as the charges against them were not proven.

The convict, Md. Fazle Azim, is the son of AKM Shah Alam from Ramgarh, Khagrachhari. He served as an official at the bank's Bahaddarhat BT branch before being suspended.

According to Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) Public Prosecutor Advocate Rezaul Karim Roni, the court found Azim guilty based on the testimony of seven witnesses. He received seven years under Section 409 of the Penal Code and an additional year under the Prevention of Corruption Act.

The court also imposed a fine of Tk 1,345,165—matching the embezzled amount. Failure to pay will result in an additional six months of imprisonment. Since the sentences will run concurrently, Azim will serve a total of seven years in prison.

Azim remains at large, and a conviction warrant has been issued for his arrest.

The case dates back to 2011, when Azim was responsible for disbursing foreign remittances. Investigators found that he created fake remittance reference numbers and used forged computer-generated receipts to withdraw and transfer funds from the bank’s FDD (Al-Razi) account. The ACC filed the case in March 2019, and formal charges were framed in February 2022.