The United Kingdom’s National Crime Agency (NCA) has frozen a number of properties linked to Saifuzzaman Chowdhury, Bangladesh’s former Minister of Land, following a legal request from Bangladeshi authorities investigating him for alleged money laundering.

The move, confirmed by an NCA spokesperson to Al Jazeera’s Investigative Unit (I-Unit), is part of an ongoing civil investigation. 

“We can confirm that the NCA has secured freezing orders against a number of properties as part of an ongoing civil investigation,” the spokesperson said in a statement.

The freeze order effectively bars Chowdhury from selling the listed assets, which reportedly include a luxury £11 million residence in St John’s Wood, London. 

The home, filmed secretly by undercover Al Jazeera reporters, was featured in the 2024 documentary The Minister’s Millions, which exposed Chowdhury’s alleged accumulation of wealth while serving as a government minister.

Chowdhury, 56, is a political ally of the now-deposed Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who fled Bangladesh in August 2024 amid a wave of student-led protests and a violent crackdown by security forces that left hundreds dead. 

The Awami League party, formerly led by Hasina, has since been banned.

During meetings secretly recorded by Al Jazeera, Chowdhury discussed his global property portfolio and close ties to Hasina. “I am like her son, actually,” he told undercover journalists. 

He also boasted of his taste for luxury, referencing “baby croc” designer shoes and expensive suits.

Last year, Al Jazeera reported that Chowdhury owned more than 350 properties in the UK alone, despite Bangladesh’s strict currency laws that limit individuals to transferring just $12,000 per year abroad. 

Investigators allege he spent more than $500 million on properties across London, Dubai, and New York—none of which were declared on his Bangladesh tax filings.

The UK’s action comes during a visit to London by Bangladesh’s interim leader, Nobel Laureate Professor Muhammad Yunus, who is reportedly prioritizing asset recovery efforts as part of a broader anti-corruption drive.

Chowdhury has denied wrongdoing, telling Al Jazeera in earlier statements that the funds used to purchase his foreign properties were generated from legitimate overseas businesses and branding the allegations as part of a politically motivated “witch-hunt.”

Source: Al Jazeera

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