NIBONG TEBAL: Bangladesh has asked Malaysian authorities to arrest and extradite Bestinet founder Mohamed Aminul Islam and his associate Mohamad Ruhul Amin, says Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail.
He said they have received an application from Bangladesh urging Malaysia to arrest the duo.
However, he added the extradition request did not specify the purpose.
"They have yet to explain the purpose of the request. Dhaka should clarify whether Mohamed Aminul and Mohamad Ruhul are needed for questioning as part of an investigation or if they are to be charged in court," said Saifuddin Nasution.
"We need to clarify the objective first. If the objective is for Dhaka to conduct investigations, then they should use the mutual legal assistance channel for that," he added.
He said this at a press conference held after the handover of the Jawi Immigration Depot and Quarters on Sunday (Nov 10).
Saifuddin was responding to a question about Bangladesh's call for the Malaysian authorities to arrest and extradite the founder of a firm managing Malaysia’s migrant worker intake and his associate.
This is part of a probe into alleged money laundering, extortion, and trafficking of migrant workers, according to a report.
He said the reason behind wanting the duo arrested needs to be clear.
"We need them to explain the purpose of the investigation or the reason for the accusation must be clear. The duo can only be extradited if Dhaka is pressing charges against them," he said.
He added that he has discussed the extradition request with the Attorney-General and Inspector-General of Police.
“I believe the IGP will handle this and liaise with the Bangladeshi counterpart," he said.
According to the report, the duo are alleged to be involved in a system that “fraudulently extorted money from the victims” and subjected them to “physical and mental torture”, based on a letter dated 24 October which Dhaka’s branch of Interpol had sent to its counterpart in Malaysia.
Bangladesh’s request was first reported on 5 November by Bloomberg.
Dhaka’s police inspector Ashiqur Rahman, who is part of Bangladesh’s Interpol Branch, and a senior Bangladeshi government official not authorised to speak publicly about the matter have both confirmed to Bloomberg that the letter was sent to Malaysia.
However, according to Bloomberg, the letter does not state whether the men have been charged.
Ashiqur added that Malaysian authorities had already responded to the letter by requesting Bangladesh to submit a formal request for extradition.
