Bangladesh's ex- Army chief found dead at a Club Guest House

Bangladesh's former Army chief Lt Gen (retd.) M Harun-Ar-Rashid was on Monday found dead in a room at the Chittagong Club, according to media reports. The 77-year-old Harun arrived in Chittagong from Dhaka on Sunday to attend a court hearing, the Dhaka Tribune newspaper reported, quoting the police. A senior official of the Destiny Group, of which the retired lieutenant general was the president, confirmed his death, the bdnews24.com news portal reported.

Harun served as Bangladesh’s Army chief from 2000-2002. On Sunday, he came to Chattogram to answer a summons in a case over financial irregularities involving Destiny Group. He was staying in the Club Guest House’s Room 308.The cause of the former Army chief’s death is not yet clear. He served as Bangladesh’s ambassador to Australia, New Zealand and Fiji.

In 2012, amid allegations of fraud and irregularities, anger and protests from affected customers, he went to prison. He was later released on bail in consideration of “his health and social status”. A court sentenced him to four years in prison on May 12, 2022 in a case by the Anti-Corruption Commission for embezzling money from Destiny Group’s customers. Harun was the first former Army chief since HM Ershad to be sentenced to jail in a case.