The intelligence apparatus of the Anti-Corruption Commission has been asked to dig the links of health ministry and health department officials with Regent Hospital owner Md Shahed, who has been absconding for the last five days after a case was filed against him over selling fake COVID-19 test reports.

‘As the commission is authorised to conduct inquiries against public servants for their any involvement in corruption activities, it is now preparing to launch an open inquiry against Shahed with an instruction to its intelligence arm to gather the necessary information,’ an ACC director general told New Age on Saturday.

He said that it already became clear to the ACC that Shahed maintained a strong relationship with officials of the health ministry and the health department, which facilitated the signing of an agreement between his Regent Hospital, which had even no registration, and the health authority allowing the hospital to provide treatment to COVID-19 patients.

Asked, ACC secretary Mohammad Delwar Bakth said that an inquiry would be launched against Shahed shortly.

He, however, refused to make any more comment on the matter before an inquiry was launched officially.

According to an ACC intelligence wing official, they are collecting all the photographs of Shahed with powerful figures, which have already gone viral, to examine the relationships between Shahed and the people seen with him in the photographs.

He said that they were also collecting data about the previous records of Shahed’s involvement in various forgery and money laundering activities as Shahed was facing over 30 cases filed against him for his alleged involvement in numerous irregularities.

Shahed became a talk of the town after the Rapid Action Battalion on July 6 conducted raids on the Uttara and Mirpur branches of his Regent Hospital in the capital and found that the hospital forged over 6,000 COVID-19 certificates and embezzled over Tk 3 crore in the name of providing COVID-19 testing facilities and treatment.

Shahed was yet to be arrested as of Saturday five days after the RAB busted his criminal operation.

The RAB, according to their intelligence at borders, fears that Shahed might leave the country after a case was filed against him and 16 others over the forgery.

But the hospital managing director Mizanur Rahman has not been named in the first information report filed with the Uttara west police station, according to the FIR.

Meanwhile, RAB executive magistrate Sarwoer Alam told New Age that they seized Shahed’s passport on Saturday while raiding the Regent Group main office in Uttara.

Some devices and computer CPUs were also seized from there, he said.

Sarwoer said that so far they had traced at least 55 fraud-related cases against Shahed in police stations in different districts.

RAB officials said that information about more and more cases was coming out as many victims are communicating with investigators about his cheating incidents.

Sarwoer said that Shahed has removed devices from his personal computers at the office and concealed those in a kitchen there sensing the RAB raid.

Now the RAB will analyse the seized devices and documents, he said.

A RAB official said that since Shahed had connections with many high-ranking people, investigators would try to trace out who was his patron and benefector.

RAB media wing director Ashik Billah told New Age that they were trying to arrest fugitive Regent Hospital chairman Md Shahed but he might be in hiding as a case was filed against him and 16 other Hospital officials and employees.

Asik said that the RAB intelligence was closely watching Shahed’s wife Sadia Arabi Rimmy and other family members with the expectation that he might communicate with them.

Shahed used to introduce himself as a member of Awami League’s sub-committee on foreign affairs.

But his name was not there, party leaders confirmed.

He had been maintaining good relations with many politicians and media personalities.

He used to share his images with ruling party leaders on social media and took advantage from various quarters showing his rapport with politicians, said RAB officials.

RAB intelligence officials said that besides running unauthorised hospitals, Shahed also started a business of selling sub-standard and unauthorised medical equipment.

The RAB seized unauthorised COVID-19 testing kits from his hospital which were meant to be sold illegally, they said.

Shahed also has a construction materials business which was also built on fraudulence. He used to bring sands, stones and bricks from Jaintapur of Sylhet but did not make full payments to the businessmen there.

A businessman named Shamsul Mawla lodged a case against him this year alleging that Shahed brought stones worth Tk 32 lak