Staff Reporter, Dhaka

Former Bangladesh Air Force chief Sheikh Abdul Hannan, a retired air chief marshal facing several corruption cases, has been arrested in Qatar, the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) said.

Qatari law enforcement detained him on 15 October, and Interpol informed the ACC by email, ACC Deputy Director Md Akhtarul Islam told the Indian news agency PTI. The ACC says he left Bangladesh despite a travel ban and pending corruption cases.

Hannan was commissioned as a pilot in 1984. He became the 16th Chief of Air Staff on 12 June 2021 and retired on 11 June 2024.

The allegations

The ACC alleges that Hannan acquired assets worth more than Tk 3.28 crore beyond his known income, and that suspicious transactions of Tk 27.63 crore passed through six of his personal bank accounts.

His wife is also accused in the case. She allegedly acquired more than Tk 1.91 crore in assets beyond her known income with his help, with suspicious transactions of Tk 1.18 crore in 32 accounts in her name. The ACC also says investigators traced assets to Canada and Dubai, and found property registered to their children in three countries.

The ACC approved charges in July 2025 under the Anti-Corruption Commission Act, the Money Laundering Prevention Act and the Prevention of Corruption Act. A court earlier ordered two of his apartments attached and his bank accounts frozen, and in March a Dhaka court ordered the seizure of the couple’s income tax records on two ACC applications.

The report did not say when or how he would be returned to Bangladesh.

Response from the accused

The PTI report did not carry any comment from Hannan or his wife. [For the editor: keep this sentence only if ACM contacts them — “ACM is seeking their comments and will add them if received.” Otherwise delete this bracketed part before publishing.]

A case or an arrest does not mean the allegations are proven. Guilt can only be determined by a court.

Source: ThePrint (PTI), 18 October 2026; Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC)