A Dhaka court has jailed Ariful Haque Chowhdury, the CEO of JKG Health Care, his wife Dr Sabrina Chowdhury and six others for 11 years each over a Covid-19 testing scam.
Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Tofazzal Hossain delivered the verdict in the presence of the accused on Tuesday.
JKG Health Care came under the scanner in the early months of the pandemic for fraudulently issuing reports without testing specimens of suspected Covid-19 patients, reports bdnews24.com.
The involvement of Sabrina, a cardiac surgeon in government service, in the scandal added to the intrigue. The health ministry later suspended her for violating service rules by holding the post of chairman in a private organisation without authorisation.
The other convicts are Ariful's sister Jebunnesa Rima, former JKG staff Humayun Kabir Himu and his wife Tanzila Patwary, Abu Sayeed Chowdhury, Bipul Das and Shafiqul Islam Romeo.
They were charged with multiple offences under the Penal Code, including forgery, breach of trust, embezzlement and cheating.
