Awlad Hossain charged with bribing Bangladeshi officials

Awlad Hossain, a 51-year-old man from Redbank Plains, Queensland, has been charged with bribing foreign public officials in Bangladesh. The charges mark the first time the Australian Federal Police (AFP) has brought an allegation of foreign bribery for personal advantage before an Australian court.

The investigation stems from the suspicious death of Hossain’s wife, Rehana Parvin, an Australian-Bangladeshi dual national whose body was discovered in Bangladesh in September 2024. Following an investigation that included seizing international transaction records from banks in Sydney and Brisbane, the AFP alleges that Hossain transferred approximately $90,000 to officials in Bangladesh to have his name removed from police records related to the death.

Authorities conducted raids on homes in Goodna and Redbank Plains, seizing electronic devices during the process. Hossain faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison for the bribery charge. While the AFP continues its investigation, Bangladeshi police are also conducting their own inquiry into Parvin’s death. Hossain was scheduled to appear in the Brisbane Magistrates Court, though the matter was adjourned due to the absence of his legal counsel.