The International Crimes Tribunal’s Prosecution wing has opened an inquiry into one of its members over allegations of conspiring with a 1971 war crimes suspect.
Lawyer Tureen Afroz allegedly had a secret meeting with the suspect she had prosecuted before the charges were leveled and a warrant was out.
“We have received reports of a secret meeting between her and the suspect. An inquiry has been opened,” Chief Prosecutor Ghulam Arieff Tipoo told Bangla Tribune on Wednesday.
Asked whether prosecutor Afroz was removed from the cases, she was dealing with, he said, “I am sick and the matter is being probed. Some one from the prosecution team can say better.”
Later in the day, Zead-al Malum, one of the ICT prosecutors, said that they have forwarded all the documents and evidence regarding to the matter to the law ministry on Wednesday.
“The chief prosecutor took her off from all cases on May 8. We have forwarded the chief prosecutor’s letters and audio recording of conversations between Afroz and the suspect to the law ministry,” he told Bangla Tribune.
According to Malum, it’s now the law ministry’s call.
Attorney General Mahbubey Alam said that Afroz will have to face actions if the allegations are found to be true.
“If it’s true, then the law ministry will definitely take actions,” he told the media at his office on Wednesday.
On Apr 24, former chief of National Security Intelligence (NSI) Wahidul Haque was arrested on charges of 1971 war crimes and sent to prison the next day.
According to sources at the ICT, Afroz was tasked the job to prosecute Haque on Nov 11. She had allegedly met the suspect to tip him off over the warrant as well as demanded money.
Following the allegations, the chief prosecutor initially took her off the case and opened an inquiry.
Afroz, however, describes the whole thing as a ‘smear campaign’ against her.
In a social media post, she said, “A smear campaign has been launched against me after an overenthusiastic newspaper ran a misleading report.”
Denying of being fired as an ICT prosecutor, Afroz wrote in a Facebook post that the ICT law permits a prosecutor to perform the jobs of an investigating officer.
“And during investigations, one has to adopt strategies,” she wrote, apparently alluding to the meeting with the suspect.
According to Afroz, her superiors had the knowledge on everything she has done until now as an ICT prosecutor.
Describing the allegations as ‘not true’, Afroz, however, said she would refrain from making further comments for “the sake of a proper investigation”.
She hoped her well-wishers and critics will wait until the inquiry ends. “I will make a statement in public after the investigation completes.”
Speaking to Bangla Tribune on Wednesday, Afroz said, “I would like to maintain the Facebook post as my official statement. No further comments for now."