Investigators have found that the mastermind and coordinator behind the recent ATM forgery incidents is a Bangladesh-origin British expatriate.
Although a foreigner and three City Bank officials have been arrested over the incidents occurred earlier this month, the mastermind – Farid Nabir – left the country before the scam was exposed. He hails from Pirmoholla area of Sylhet.
Arrested Piotr Szczepan Mazurek alias Thomas Piotr, who is a member of an international ATM forgery gang, meet with the three bank officials – Maksud, Rezaul Karim Shahin and Refaz Ahmed Roni – through Farid, according to a high official of the Detective Branch.
The criminals analysed the related issues for a long time, the DB official told the Dhaka Tribune yesterday, requesting not to be named. The information was found from the arrestees during interrogation.
The investigators came to know that the criminals received technical support from two other members of an international ATM forgery gang – Ukrainian Andy and Romanian Romeo.
At least 40 people having accounts in three banks lost around Tk20 lakh from their debit and credit cards on February 7-8. The criminals had installed skimming devices in the ATM machines to clone the cards. The number of affected people and the amount could go up at the end of investigation, police said.
The arrestees confessed that Farid had brought the international members to Bangladesh a number of times with him. They first came to Bangladesh on December 13, 2014 and checked into Hotel Holiday Planet at Gulshan.
At that time, all but Piotr left the country on December 24. Piotr used to coordinate with the local criminals and analyse the situation, while the other members maintained contact with him over the mobile phone.
After all preparations were done, Farid came to Bangladesh on January 20 while Andy and Romeo on January 31. Farid left the country for London on February 3 after finalising everything. Romeo left Bangladesh on February 13 and Andy on February 14.
However, Pitor was not able to leave the country as he married a Bangladeshi girl and rented a house in Gulshan 2.
Farid was identified from the CCTV camera footage of the hotel. The investigators are now assessing the footage to identify his blue Pajero Jeep.
Farid is involved in various anti-state activities in London, a DB officer said. “We are trying to know about his visits to Bangladesh and the persons he used to meet here,” the official said.
Md Shahjahan, additional deputy commissioner of DB police, said that the ATM forgery gang was not too small. “They might be involved in other forgery activities too. Farid himself planned and coordinated the ATM issue,” he told the Dhaka Tribune.
