The Anti-Corruption Commission chairman Mohammad Moinuddin Abdullah on Tuesday said that during the collection of information related to money laundering at home and abroad, the commission faced various complications resulting in delays in settling the issues.

He came up with the remark during a view-exchange meeting with journalist organisation Reporters Against Corruption at the commission head office.

He categorically stated that the commission had no list of money launderers.

The commission was collecting data from other departments including Bangladesh Bank and foreign ministry, he added.

He said that the commission had sent a letter to the foreign ministry seeking information about money laundering as well as the names of the people who made investments in foreign countries.

The ACC chairman said that the commission sent a letter to the foreign ministry seeking information about money launderers as well as a list of people who made investments in foreign countries but is yet to get any reply.

‘Different countries are  refusing to share information before filing any case against the money laundering suspect while we are failing to sue the suspect due to the shortage of evidence,’ Moinuddin said.

He also said that the commission is handling the issues of bribery relating to money laundering while the other issues are dealt by other agencies including the Bangladesh Financial Intelligence Unit and the Criminal Investigation Department.

In the past week, finance minister AHM Mustafa Kamal sought names of the money launderers from opposition lawmakers in parliament after they criticised the government for failure to curb money laundering.

In January, the commission sent a letter to the foreign ministry asking for information on government officials, politicians, business people and individuals who have siphoned off money abroad, including Malaysia, Singapore, the USA, Canada and Australia.

The commission made the request following a High Court suo motu ruling that directed the government and the commission to submit it to the details about the government officials, politicians, businessmen and others who siphoned off money abroad, including Malaysia, Singapore, the USA, Canada and Australia.

The High Court on November 22, 2020, also directed that money should not be sent to foreign countries except through the Bangladesh Bank channel.

An online bench of Nazrul Islam Talukder and Ahmed Sohel issued the ruling taking cognizance of foreign minister AK Abdul Momen’s November 18 public statement, published in many newspapers on the following day.

The minister said that he had received information from an unofficial channel that many Bangladeshis bought luxurious houses in an area called Begum Para in Canada with millions of dollars laundered from Bangladesh.

It has been named Begum Para as the wives and children of a section of Bangladeshi millionaires live in Canada.

It is widely believed that mainly politicians had bought residences there.

Earlier on October 22, 2020, the commission sent a letter to the foreign ministry requesting it to collect and provide information about those Bangladeshis who obtained foreign citizenship in the ‘investment quota’.

In the letter, the commission said that various media reports and international research findings mentioned that a huge amount of money was laundered from Bangladesh through misinvoicing, hundi and bulk cash transfers hampering the country’s development.