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The National Revenue Board has instructed banks to freeze the accounts held by Regent Hospital Chairman Mohammad Shahed and JKG Health Care Chairman Dr Sabrina Arif Chowdhury, who have been arrested over their alleged involvement in COVID-19 test scams.
The apex tax administration authority has written to the central bank in this regard, reports bdnews24.com quoting a top NBR official.
"We sent a letter to the Bangladesh Bank a day after the arrest of JKG Chairman Sabrina. Aside from seeking their account details, we have also asked them to seize their bank accounts," Md Alamgir Hossain, director-general of NBR's Central Intelligence Cell, said on Friday.
The NBR has also moved to freeze the bank account of Regent Hospital's Director Ibrahim Khalil.
"We will take legal action against them if we find proof of any irregularity in the bank accounts," said Alamgir.
The RAB sealed off the headquarters and two branches of Regent Hospital in Dhaka after it emerged that the hospital authorities had swindled thousands of unsuspecting patients out of millions of takas on the pretext of coronavirus treatment.
It also initiated a case against 17 people, including Shahed, on charges of issuing fake COVID-19 test reports and other irregularities.
The case alleges that the hospital authorities duped nearly 6,000 patients out of Tk 20.1 million by issuing fake coronavirus tests reports even though it was supposed to provide free treatment for COVID-19. They later billed Tk 19.6 million to the health directorate.
The RAB arrested Shahed in a Satkhira village bordering India on Wednesday and airlifted him to Dhaka before handing him over to the police.
Sabrina, a government cardiac surgeon and the wife of JKG Health Care CEO Ariful Chaudhury, was suspended by the health ministry for violating service rules by holding the post of chairman in a private organisation without permission.
Police brought charges against JKG Health Care for providing false reports without testing the swabs collected from the people for COVID-19 tests. Sabrina was later arrested and placed on a three-day remand by a Dhaka court.