Detectives have identified two local men who helped Piotr Szczepan Mazurek withdraw money from ATM machines using cloned cards. The new suspects are under surveillance, said an investigator close to the case.
Requesting anonymity, the senior Detective Branch official told the Dhaka Tribune that two technology exper ts were present when Piotr, the prime suspect in the scam, withdrew money from a City Bank booth in the capital’s Kalshi area.
The new suspects would be arrested after a few details are verified, the official added.
Three more people have also been detained for interrogation. They include a money exchange businessman who helped Piotr convert taka to US dollar and send it to Farid Nabir, the suspected mastermind, in London.
Based on information Piotr provided during his remand, detectives are also trying to analyse digital traces to identify two more Eastern Bank employees who reportedly helped the Polish national.
Maruf Hossain Sarder, a deputy commissioner of the DMP, said they were uncovering many more leads in the case that needed to be analysed.
Meanwhile, a Dhaka court yesterday granted a fresh five-day remand against Piotr and three more City Bank officials – Moksed Alam Maksud, Rezaul Karim Shahin and Refaz Ahmed Roni. The order came after the police placed them before the court at the end of a six-day remand.
Second phase of the scam
The gang of ATM card forgers were ready to move on to the second phase of their plans that included securing contracts from the banks to set up ATM booths themselves, said a law enforcer involved in the probe process.
The plan was to set up booths that already had skimming devices installed on the automated teller machines (ATM). That way, the gang would easily be able to collect client information and clone their cards.
During interrogation, Piotr said he and Farid Nabir were almost ready to carry out this plan, the law enforcer added.
Meanwhile, Piotr’s wife Rozina Akther Marina continues to be under surveillance. Detectives said Marina might have deleted information from Piotr’s laptop and mobile phone, which were still at the suspect’s home for an entire day after his arrest.
Md Shahjahan, additional deputy commissioner of DB police, said the laptop has been sent to experts to scan and retrieve any deleted data.