The Anti-Corruption Commission is likely to submit to the courts by December the charge sheets in all 22 cases filed in the past year over the casino scam.

The ACC has already approved the charge sheet against expelled Juba League leader Ismail Hossain Chowdhury Samrat.

The inquiries under almost all cases were completed and the investigators are now preparing their reports with recommendations to approve the charge sheets against accused in the cases, an ACC director general on Monday told New Age.

He said that the probe reports would be submitted to the commission chairman and two commissioners for their nods to submit the charge sheets to the respective courts.

In 2019, the commission filed the 22 cases against 25 people, including Samrat and controversial contractor GK Shamim, on charge of accumulating illegal wealth from illegal casino and other businesses.

In the past week, the commission filed two cases against suspended Faridpur municipality Awami League general secretary Sazzad Hossen Barkat and his brother suspended Faridpur press club president Imtiaz Hasan Rubel on charge of possessing illegal wealth worth Tk 73 crore.

Asked about the progress on the 22 cases, commissioner Mozammel Haque Khan on Monday said that the investigators were already asked to submit their reports to the commission as soon as possible.

The assigned officers, he added, were also asked to complete their pending work of inquiry into the allegations of involvement in illegal casino and other money-making operations.

Properties of the 25 accused were already confiscated by the commission in connection with the cases.

The accused include Samrat, suspended JL leader Enamul Haque Arman, online casino business kingpin Salim Pradhan, Mohammedan Sporting Club director Lokman Hossain Bhuiyan, AL leader Enamul Haque Enu and his brother Rupon Bhuiyan, expelled JL office secretary Kazi Anisur Rahman, suspended JL leader and Kalabagan Krira Chakra Club president Shafiqul Alam Firoz, former Dhaka North City councillors Habibur Rahman and Tariquzzaman Rajib, former Dhaka South City councillor AKM Mominul Haque Sayeed and former JL central committee member M Jakir Hossain, former additional chief engineer of the Public  Works Department Utpal Kumar Dey, PWD engineer M Momitur Rahman and PWD contractor Shafiqul Islam.

According to ACC officials, 19 of the 25 accused are now in jail, three on bail while the rest three are yet to be arrested.

They said that Lokman, Shafiqul Alam Firoz and contractor Shafiqul were on bail while Utpal Kumar, his wife Gopa Dey and GK Shamim’s mother Ayesha Akter were not arrested.

As part of the inquiries into the casino scam, the commission on October 23 and 24, 2019 imposed a ban on foreign travel by ruling AL lawmakers Nurunnabi Chowdhury, Shamsul Hoque Chowdhury and Mouazzam Hossain Ratan and 20 others, including 11 holding political posts mostly in Juba League.

The commission started the inquiries on September 30, 2019.

On September 18, 2019, law enforcement agencies launched a drive against illegal casinos and illegal bars in the capital and detained several JL leaders, among others, for their involvement in such illegal businesses.

After law enforcement agencies raided sporting clubs at Motijheel and unearthed huge casino equipment, the name of Samrat came into discussion for his alleged major involvement in casinos.