3 lawyers ‘indirectly involved’ in funding extremism: Prosecution

Prosecution today claimed that the three lawyers, who were arrested over funding Islamist extremism, confessed before a court in Chittagong about their involvement in the act.

“They confessed that they were involved indirectly in funding Islamic extremism,” Bikash Ranjan Dey, the prosecution lawyer in the case, told The Daily Star today.

A Chittagong court sent the three lawyers to jail this afternoon after recording their confessional statements.

Senior Judicial Magistrate Sazzad Hossain of Bashkhali upazila also rejected defence lawyer’s petition which sought bail to the trio, reports our Chittagong correspondent.

On Tuesday, members of Rapid Action battalion (Rab)-7 arrested Shakila Farzana, 39, and Hasanuzzaman Liton, 30, who reportedly practice at the Supreme Court, and Mahfuz Chowdhury Bapon, 25, who practices at the District Judge's Court of Dhaka, in Dhanmondi area of Dhaka.

The trio deposited a total of Tk 1.08 crore in the bank account of a key member of the Shaheed Hamja Brigade. Of the money, Shakila deposited Tk 52 lakh in cash in two installments, Liton Tk 31 lakh and Bapon Tk 25 lakh, the counterterrorism force claimed.

After taking their confessional statement – started around 10:40am – the court heard their bail prayer.

Meanwhile, defence lawyer Abdus Sattar alleged that he was not allowed to contact his clients before the start of the court proceedings.

On Wednesday, a Chittagong court placed the arrestees on four days' remand each.

On the first day of the remand, all the three “confessed” that they deposited the money in the bank account of Moniruzzaman alias Don, a key member of the outfit, according to an earlier claim by the Rab-7.