Top official of Bangladesh’s revenue department, Matiur Rahman, who grabbed news headlines in the country following his son’s buying a goat with BDT 1.5 million and several cows with additional 7-8 million has fled the country – entered India through Agartala border and is now waiting to fly to Dubai. He fled the country hours before a local court in Dhaka issued an order imposing a travel ban on this corrupt customs official.

Dhaka Metropolitan Senior Special Judge Mohammad As-Shams Jaglul Hossain issued the ban on June 24, 2024 in response to a petition from the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC).

Dhaka’s leading Bangla daily Prothom Alo in its report said, in addition to Matiur, the court has also imposed a travel ban on his first wife Laila Kaniz Lucky and son Ahmed Toufiqur Rahman from leaving the country. A college teacher, Laila Kaniz Lucky is currently the chairman of Raipur upazila in Narsingdi and relief and social welfare affairs secretary of ruling Awami League’s Narsingdi district unit.

Laila Kaniz Lucky’s tax files submitted to the Election Commission before this year’s Narsingdi upazila polls claim she is worth BTD 100.31 million, but a closer look indicates she may have understated her wealth by dozens of times.

This innocuous-looking list does not even mention her palace-like home in Raipura upazila’s Marjal village – an omission that raises eyebrows due to the opulence of the residence.

Lucky retired as an associate professor of Bangla at Government Titumir College in the capital four years ago, and according to her tax filings, she gets a pension of only BDT 465,000 per year.

According to local media reports, several customs officers close to Matiur Rahman said that he escaped through Akhaura land port on Sunday afternoon. Earlier, on June 23, 2024, the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) constituted a three-member team to begin investigating his allegations of corruption and illegal wealth acquisition. On the same day, he was removed from the post of chairman of the Customs, Excise and VAT Appellate Tribunal and attached to the Internal Resources Department (OSD) of the Ministry of Finance. He also lost the directorship of Sonali Bank.

Dhaka’s vernacular dailies said, following fleeing to India through Akhaura border, Matiur Rahman is anticipated to fly for Dubai. In West Bengal, a very influential quarter comprising several leaders of ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) coordinated his escape from Bangladesh and currently he is staying at the residence of a TMC leader where from he will leave India by Emirate Airways.

Another source claimed, Matiur Rahman, who amassed a fortune of a few hundred million dollars, had paid a hefty amount in cash to the influential quarter in West Bengal in exchange for helping him in smuggling-out a very large amount of money through illegal hawala channels from Bangladesh to Dubai, prior to leaving India.

It said, to hide his identity under camouflage, Matiur has shaved his head.

Meanwhile, Dhaka-based Daily Rupantor says, prior to fleeing from Bangladesh, Matiur Rahman sent his second wife and son to Malaysia where he has purchased a huge volume of properties and invested in a number of businesses.

According to a report published in Blitz, Matiur Rahman’s wealth is best exemplified by the lavish homes he built for his two wives, Laila Kaniz Lucky and Shammi Akther Shibly, under the names of various relatives. These homes are more than just residences; they symbolize the heights of his financial success and the depths of his corruption. The collection of nine luxury cars, including brands such as Mercedes, BMW, and Prado, is another glaring indication of his extravagant lifestyle. However, beneath this veneer of opulence lies a web of illicit activities and financial misconduct.

An investigation into Matiur Rahman’s financial activities reveals a staggering accumulation of wealth through a variety of illegal means. His career at the NBR provided ample opportunities for bribery, which became a significant source of his fortune. Matiur’s corruption extended beyond simple bribes. He misused his power to establish businesses and factories in the names of his family members, thereby camouflaging his assets and expanding his financial empire.

A particularly lucrative scheme involved exploiting duty-free import facilities to bring goods into the country, which he then sold on the open market at a significant profit. This not only violated import regulations but also deprived the government of substantial revenue. Furthermore, Matiur was implicated in stock market manipulation, where his insider knowledge and financial muscle allowed him to amass significant profits, amounting to hundreds of millions of Bangladeshi Taka.

The scandal surrounding Matiur Rahman’s family reached its zenith when his son, Mushfequr Rahman Ifat, went viral on social media. A video showing Ifat purchasing a goat for BDT 1.5 million sparked outrage and curiosity about his luxurious lifestyle, which included high-end watches, expensive cars, and a generally opulent existence. This raised immediate questions about how Ifat could afford such extravagance on the salary of a government employee’s son.

The Facebook account of Matiur Rahman is filled with photographs of luxurious lifestyles of his family members.

Dhaka’s leading English newspaper The Daily Star in a report said, highly-connected NBR officials and his close and distant family members have great wealth, including significant stakes in various companies.

It may be mentioned here that a very large number of corrupt individuals from around the world, including Bangladesh, have been regularly investing heavily in business and properties in Dubai, Malaysia, Britain, Canada and the United States while those countries are turning a blind eye to such massive flow of dark money.

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