Arrest warrant issued against Appollo Ispat’s Shoeb, 4 others

A Dhaka court has issued arrest warrants against Appollo Ispat Complex Limited Vice-Chairman Mohammad Shoeb and four of its top officials in two cases filed over cheque fraud of around Tk 5.6 crore.

Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Md Shafiuddin issued the warrants after hearing a case filed in this regard on Tuesday.

Other accused who faced the arrest warrants are — Appollo Ispat’s Vice-Chairman Ivana Fahmida Mohammad, Managing Director Md Rafique, and directors MA Mazid and Roksana Begum.

Md Nurul Alam, the proprietor of Setu Steel Mills Ltd, filed the cases with the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Court on October 28.

Md Mesbahuddin, the lawyer of the plaintiff, said although the accused were summoned to appear in court earlier, they did not comply with the order.

“On Tuesday, the plaintiff submitted a petition seeking warrants for the arrest of the accused and the court granted the petition,” he added.

According to the case statement, the plaintiff took loans to pay Tk 5.6 crore to Appollo Ispat Complex Limited to buy raw materials.

However, the company failed to deliver him the goods.

On June 14, the company handed over two cheques — one of Tk 5 crore and another of Tk 59,29,263 — of Al-Arafah Islami Bank Limited to the plaintiff.

The plaintiff, however, could not cash the cheques as those were bounced back on August 31.

The plaintiff informed the matter to the company, after which they promised to return the amount in cash.

However, on September 20, Nurul Alam served a legal notice to the accused as they were yet to take any steps over the issue.

He filed the cases later on as the accused did not comply with the legal notice.

Appollo Ispat drenched in debt

Late industrialist Deen Mohammad started his entrepreneurial journey in 1960 through trading business. He set up a dozen industrial and service units under Phoenix Group and Appollo Group of Industries.

Five of the companies are currently listed on the stock exchange. Of the five, Appollo Ispat Complex Limited remains in a fragile state for several years. Production at the debt-ridden company has already halted.

It is now unable to pay back creditors across the country. As a result, the creditors are also at risk of going bankrupt. The arrogance of Vice-Chairman Mohammad Shoeb has mainly put the company in a muddle.

Appollo Ispat’s current bank loans stand at Tk 550 crore. It owes financial institutions Tk 240 crore while party loan has amounted to Tk 55 crore. It is unable to repay the loans. This is mainly due to the incompetence of Shoeb, who had been sacking skilled workers and hiring unskilled people, sources alleged.

He makes unwanted interference in the company affairs. He is not worried about repaying bank loans. He mistreats employees who are not getting paid for seven to eight months and are living an inhuman life, employees at the Appollo Ispat alleged.

Insiders said Shoeb takes all decisions at his whims, bypassing other directors and high-ups at Appollo.

“Appollo is actually a one-man show. He fires, recruits, and humiliates people at our company without any reason and any rationale,” a former Appollo Ispat official told The Business Post, requesting anonymity.