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A Dhaka court has sentenced Mohammad Shahed, also known as Shahed Karim, chairman of the controversial Regent Hospital and Regent Group, to one year in prison in a cheque dishonour case involving Tk 2.318 million.
The verdict was delivered on Sunday by Judge Md Ariful Islam of the Third Joint Metropolitan Sessions Judge’s Court in Dhaka.
The court also fined Shahed an amount equal to the value of the dishonoured cheque.
Defence lawyer Mohammad Dabir Uddin said the court had delivered the verdict in Shahed’s absence on May 3.
Based on that judgment, he was shown arrested in the case on Sunday. His bail petition was later rejected, and the court ordered that he be sent to jail.
The lawyer said the defence was aware of another case filed on July 16, 2020, related to the same incident but had no knowledge of the cheque dishonour case.
As a result, the verdict was delivered in the accused’s absence.
According to the case statement, Hafiz Uddin Bahar, proprietor of Bahar Traders International, filed the case on July 26, 2020. He alleged that Shahed purchased construction materials from his business, made a partial cash payment, and promised to pay the remaining amount by cheque.
Shahed issued a cheque dated December 10, 2019, from Uttara Bank’s Nawabpur Branch. When the cheque was presented for payment on May 5, 2020, it was dishonoured due to insufficient funds.
Despite receiving a legal notice, he failed to settle the payment within the stipulated time, prompting the lawsuit.
Earlier, on July 30, Shahed was granted 10 days’ bail on a bond of Tk 5,000 in a separate fraud case after reaching a settlement with the complainant.
On July 20, he was arrested by Pallabi Police based on an arrest warrant issued in another cheque dishonour case involving Tk 21.6 million. He has remained in custody since then.
Shahed faces more than 35 criminal cases, including charges of fraud, illegal arms possession, and amassing wealth beyond known sources of income. On September 28, 2020, he was sentenced to life imprisonment in an arms case.
After securing bail in several other cases, he was released from prison on September 4, 2024, following nearly four years behind bars.