ACC uncovers Golap’s Tk320cr assets in NY, sues him

The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has filed a case against former MP Abdus Sobhan Golap over allegations of amassing wealth worth Tk68 crore beyond known sources of income.

The national anti-graft watchdog said it also came to know about Golap’s assets worth Tk320 crore, including luxury properties in New York, through a report.

ACC Director General (Prevention) and Spokesperson Akhtar Hossain said this in a media briefing at its headquarters in the capital on Wednesday.

Earlier a Dhaka court on 19 January ordered the confiscation of nine immovable assets in the USA and a five-storey house in Dhaka's Mirpur owned by Golap and his family members.

According to the ACC case statement, Awami League leader Golap, who was elected as an MP from Madaripur-3 constituency in the rigged 2018 election, allegedly owns nine apartments and houses in Queens, New York, valued at approximately Tk320 crore, as per an Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project report.

According to his income tax return, his income is only Tk14.4 crore, but his assets at home and abroad account to Tk683.27 crore, as per the report, raising serious concerns about the source of his fortune.

The ACC investigation further uncovered suspicious transactions amounting to Tk976.32 crore across 51 bank accounts linked to Golap.

The commission suspects these funds may have been laundered or acquired through illicit means, as mentioned in the report.

On 2 October 2024, the court imposed a travel ban on Abdus Sobhan Golap. He was arrested on 25 August from the capital's Nakhalpara area.