One and a half years have elapsed since the investigation into the Bangladesh Bank fund heist began, but little progress has been made in the probe.

 Bangladesh has managed to retrieve only around $36 million of the total $101 million stolen from the central bank’s account with Federal Reserve in the US.Investigators are still unsure about how the rest of the money could be recovered.

 Dhaka Chief Metropolitan Magistrate’s Court deferred the probe report submission deadline for 13 times on time petition by the investigators of CID.

 Finally, on June 19, Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate AKM Mainuddin Siddique directed CID to submit the report by July 30 in the case.

 Sources at CID said they sent letters to the countries concerned requesting their authorities to arrest the suspects in the heist and provide Bangladesh with the information extracted from them.   

 An investigator told the daily sun the probe is almost complete and they will submit the charge sheet after getting the reply from those countries.

 At least 40 to 45 persons, including foreigners, are accused in the case filed on charges of criminal offences and negligence of duty.

 CID officials said the investigation is at the final stage.

 “Apart from Bangladesh, people of eight countries were involved in the incident. So the investigation is taking time,” an official said.  

 Mollah Nazrul Islam, Special Police Super of CID’s organised crime department, said, “We sent the letters through the embassies of those countries for arresting some suspects in their respective countries and supply us the information extracted from them.”

  INTERPOL is coordinating with the concerned countries’ law enforcement agencies over the investigation of the much-talked fund heist.

 Investigators said they found involvement of 10 to 12 Bangladeshi nationals and 30 to 35 people of eight countries, including Philippines, China, Sri Lanka, Egypt, Japan, Singapore, Hong Kong—-with the heist.

 “It is very difficult to interrogate and take legal action against people in other countries without the help of the concerned law enforcers in those countries, said a CID official.   

 Apart from the CID, the police headquarters, Police Bureau of Investigation (PBI), Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) and Special Branch (SB) are also helping the investigation.

 A team comprising all the departments lead by CID’s organised crime department’s Additional Police Super Raihan Uddin Khan is investigating the case filed under Money Laundering Prevention Act and the ICT Act with Motijheel police station in the capital.

 On February 4, 2016, hackers attempted to steal $101 million from Bangladesh Bank’s account with Federal Reserve Bank in New York.

 On March 15, 2016, investigation began after a case was filed on the same day the then governor of Bangladesh Bank Dr Atiur Rahman resigned amid huge criticism over the incident.

 Of the $101 million, transfer of $20 million was immediately stopped by a Sri Lankan bank but the hackers managed to transfer $81 million to Rizal Commercial Banking Corporation (RCBC) in the Philippines.

 Bangladesh also retrieved $68,000 that was left behind by the hackers at RCBC.

 A probe panel formed by the Bangladesh Bank, headed by former governor Mohammed Farashuddin, submitted its report to the Finance Ministry on May 30, last year, but Finance Minister AMA Muhith did not release the committee’s findings despite repeated pledges to do so.