1.5M Pound apartment of former land minister's brother seized in London
Graphics: Agamir Somoy
The UK High Court has issued a prohibition on the sale and transfer of a 1.5 million pound apartment near Regent's Park in London. This order has come as part of an investigation into recovering assets linked to Bangladesh's influential Chowdhury family. The owner of the flat is Anisuzzaman Roni Chowdhury, brother of Bangladesh's former Land Minister Saifuzzaman Chowdhury Javed.
Under the UK's anti-corruption law, if the source of money cannot be explained, specific property is presumed to have been bought through illegal activities. Following this, the National Crime Agency (NCA) sought an order from the High Court to seize the flat.
According to a report by London's influential daily Financial Times, the flat is linked to suspicious activities such as embezzlement, corruption, fraud, and money laundering. Anisuzzaman Roni Chowdhury bought the flat through one of his companies. However, he could not provide a satisfactory explanation about the source of the money.
In an evidence statement submitted to the court, an NCA investigation officer said the ownership structure of the flat was "deliberately" obscured. In September 2025, the shares of the company that owns the flat were transferred to another party for just 1 pound.
The NCA argued that through the share transfer, an attempt was made to conceal Anisuzzaman Roni Chowdhury's ownership of the flat. The agency also claimed there was a plan to later return the company's ownership to his wife and two daughters.
Justice Karen Stein ruled that the grounds for believing the flat was bought with crime proceeds were reasonable. She then ordered the seizure of the flat. However, the judge also left room for Anisuzzaman Roni Chowdhury to pursue legal proceedings to recover possession. Anisuzzaman Roni Chowdhury's lawyers did not oppose the prohibition order in court.
Anisuzzaman Roni Chowdhury's statement is that he is not involved in any illegal activities. He has denied the allegation of concealing ownership.
He has said he will continue the legal fight if any asset recovery case is filed in the future and defamatory statements are made about him and his family members.
Investigation in the UK Over Former Minister's Assets
The Financial Times has learned that this case is part of a broader investigation ongoing in the UK regarding assets linked to former Land Minister Saifuzzaman Chowdhury Javed.
In June last year, the NCA seized properties worth approximately 18.5 million pounds linked to the former minister. At the same time, an order was obtained requiring him, his wife, and related companies to explain the source of the assets.
According to court documents, Saifuzzaman Chowdhury Javed and his relatives accumulated assets worth approximately 29.5 million dollars from 1992 until August 2024. In August 2024, Sheikh Hasina's government fell in a student-people mass uprising. Later, Dr. Muhammad Yunus took charge of the interim government. His government took initiatives to investigate the sources of these assets held abroad.
The Bangladesh government claims that these properties were bought with money siphoned out of Bangladesh during Sheikh Hasina's rule.
Documents from the land registry office show that Anisuzzaman Roni Chowdhury bought the flat in 2023 through a company named "Roni 42 Limited" for 1.24 million pounds. The company was later renamed PNN UK Properties.
NCA lawyers told the court that the transfer of the company's shares for just 1 pound was a convenient arrangement. This arrangement was made during an attempt to refinance a loan taken against the flat. The lender was DBS Bank of Singapore. However, the attempt was unsuccessful. After failing to repay the loan, DBS Bank is trying to recover possession of the property.
