No govt hand in Coco verdict: Huq

Dhaka, June 23 (bdnews24.com)?Anti-Corruption Commission lawyer Anisul Huq has refuted allegations that the government influenced the court to convict Arafat Rahman Coco, son of BNP chief Khaleda Zia, for laundering money.

Speaking to journalists following the conviction of Coco and his associate on Thursday, the country's top criminal lawyer said clues about the laundered money was revealed while the FBI was investigating a bribery charge against telecom giant Siemens AG.

"FBI had given the information it got from Siemens and the Anti-Corruption Commission later investigated the matter and pressed the charges."

Coco and Ismail Hossain Simon, son of former BNP shipping minister late Akbar Hossain, were both jailed for six years and fined Tk 190.41 million each in the case filed by the ACC for laundering SGD 2,884,000 and USD 932,000 to Singapore.

They had received the amount from China Harbour Engineering Company Ltd and Siemens AG for helping them bag government contracts.

China Harbour got a Tk 3.51 billion contract to set up New Mooring Container Terminal and Siemens a Tk 2.39 billion deal to supply and install equipment for Teletalk, the state-owned cell phone operator.

Huq said Siemens had admitted the allegation and gave FBI all related information about the transaction of money and the bank accounts.

"Moreover, information collected from several other foreign sources and documents were submitted to the court."

"So I can't understand how the case had link with the government," he added.

BNP earlier alleged that the verdict in the case was being given hastily with a clandestine motive. The main opposition also said the prime minister's order to fast-track money-laundering cases had a link with the 'hasty judgement'.

After the judgement, acting secretary-general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Thursday said, "This verdict is pre-determined and politically motivated. The government has given the verdict by filing a false case against Coco to disgrace the family of Ziaur Rahman to wreak vengeance."

Coco, arrested on Sep 3, 2007 in the GATCO corruption case, has been in Bangkok for treatment on parole since July 19, 2008, while Simon is still at large.

Asked if Coco could be given mercy like many others who had been punished in cases filed after the January 11, 2007 changeover, Huq replied: "The cases filed after the one-eleven changeover were mostly about property, but it's a money laundering case. I don't think he would be excused."

About Coco's repatriation, he said the government could bring him back if there is any existing treaty between the two countries.

Coco has five more cases against him.

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