Four Bangladeshi workers, who were detained in Singapore last month, have been found guilty of financing terrorism.
The men were accused of providing and collecting money to finance terror attacks in Bangladesh. They are the first to be charged under the Terrorism (Suppression of Financing) Act. They were detained in Singapore under the Internal Security Act (ISA).
The court documents said the extremists face between one and four counts each for providing and collecting money to finance terror attacks in Bangladesh.
The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) said the men were employed in the local construction sites and marine industries. Their intention was to join the Islamic State as foreign fighters but later they realized that it would be difficult for them to travel to Syria. Hence they focused on launching attacks in Bangladesh.
MHA also said it has been seen that the group had identified several possible attack targets in Bangladesh and possessed documents on weapons and bomb-making. They also had ISIS and Al Qaeda radical material. The group had planned to recruit other Bangladeshi nationals working in Singapore, it added.
The group which calls itself Islamic State in Bangladesh was set up by ringleader Rahman Mizanur. The 31-year-old Mizanur was detained along with several others in April under the Internal Security Act.
