KUALA LUMPUR – Bangladeshi authorities have asked Malaysia to arrest and extradite two businessmen, including Datuk Seri Mohd Amin Abdul Nor, the founder of IT solutions company Bestinet Sdn Bhd, to aid investigations into alleged money laundering, extortion, and migrant worker trafficking.
In addition to Amin, a Bangladeshi-born Malaysian citizen also known as Aminul Islam Abdul Nor, Bangladesh police are seeking Ruhul Amin, reportedly his representative in the country.
A report by Bloomberg today claimed the men played “key roles” in a scheme that “fraudulently extorted money from victims” and subjected them to “physical and mental torture.”
The report referenced an October 24 letter from Bangladesh’s Interpol branch to its Malaysian counterpart, with police inspector Ashiqur Rahman of Bangladesh’s Interpol branch confirming that Malaysian authorities had responded.
Ashiqur noted that Bangladesh police are preparing the necessary documents to meet Malaysia’s requirement for a formal extradition request. He added that the two men were last seen in Kuala Lumpur.
Scoop has contacted Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Razarudin Husain for comment on the matter.
Additionally, Bangladesh police reportedly requested that Putrajaya temporarily suspend the use of software provided by Bestinet, whose contract with Malaysia’s Home Ministry to operate the Foreign Workers Centralised Management System (FWCMS) was recently renewed.
Previously, Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) chief commissioner Tan Sri Azam Baki told Scoop that the MACC had classified its investigation into Bestinet as “no further action” after finding “no evidence of criminal activity.”
He also noted that the commission had found nothing to support money laundering allegations published by the Dhaka-based Prothom Alo, which claimed that a syndicate in Bangladesh was profiting from recruiting migrant workers to Malaysia.
Azam clarified, however, that MACC’s past investigations into Bestinet were unrelated to the allegations raised by Prothom Alo, though he did not elaborate on the specifics of the earlier investigation.
According to the report, syndicates tied to the Malaysian labour market allegedly laundered BDT87.50 billion (RM3.08 billion) from fees collected from Bangladeshi workers.
The report named the alleged syndicate’s main players as “Bangladeshi-born Malaysian citizen Aminul Islam Abdul Nor and his representative in Bangladesh, one Mohammad Ruhul Amin.”
The foreign report also cited two members of the alleged syndicate who claimed that Aminul Islam “demands extra payment” under the pretext of bribing “various officials” in Malaysia.
Amin, also known as “Amin Bangla” in Malaysia, was questioned by MACC in 2022 during a raid on Bestinet.
An MACC officer told Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee (PAC) that Bestinet was still under investigation as of January.
In June, Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail confirmed the cabinet’s decision to renew Bestinet’s contract with the Home Ministry to continue developing, supplying, and maintaining the FWCMS after its previous six-year contract expired on May 31.
Later in July, PAC chairman Datuk Mas Ermieyati Samsudin said that the committee would scrutinise the contract extension, noting that the committee had not summoned Aminul Islam, as he was believed to be no longer affiliated with Bestinet.
In August, reports indicated that Bangladesh’s Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) had named the Malaysian government in its probe into a syndicate accused of fraudulently taking money from migrant workers. – October 5, 2024