A Bangladeshi court on Thursday sentenced the younger son of former prime minister Khaleda Zia to six years in prison for laundering nearly $1 million through bank accounts in Singapore, a lawyer said. Arafat Rahman Koko, who was tried in absentia and is currently in Bangkok, was fined $5.2 million for the crimes, carried out when his mother was last in power between 2001 and 2006, said state lawyer Mosharaf Hossain.
“The court has convicted Arafat Rahman Koko and given him six years’ imprisonment… for earning money illegally and laundering money through Singapore,” Hossain, who represented the government in the case, told AFP. “He will be arrested when he gets back from Bangkok or — as there is an agreement between Thailand and Bangladesh — there is the possibility the government will begin extradition proceedings against him,” he added.
