Salman Shahbaz's employees' bank accounts used for money laundering, NAB tells LHC
55
The Lahore High Court (LHC) extended Hamza Shahbaz's interim bail on Wednesday in three different corruption cases that are being probed by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB).
A two-judge bench comprising Justice Ali Baqar Najafi and Justice Sardar Ahmad Naeem heard the case today. The NAB prosecutor told the court that the bureau had provided Hamza with grounds for arrest as well as documents showing approval of the inquiries by the competent authority.
Hamza's counsel argued that NAB had not provided a report by the Financial Monitoring Unit (FMU) and urged the court to order the bureau to hand the documents over to the petitioner. The NAB prosecutor argued that the FMU report was a classified document and could not be given to Hamza.
Hamza is being investigated for owning assets beyond his known sources of income, and alleged corruption in Ramzan Sugar Mills and the Punjab Saaf Pani Company.
The bench directed NAB to inform the court about the background of the cases against Hamza. The anti-corruption watchdog told the bench that Hamza, as well as his brother Salman and father Shahbaz Sharif, owned assets beyond their means.
NAB explained that Salman's frontmen were involved in money laundering through bank accounts belonging to Salman's employees.
Read more: Tareen’s employees involved in insider trading, counsel tells SC
The NAB prosecutor said that Mohammad Mushtaq alias Chini, who was the manager of Ramzan Sugar Mills and had been offloaded from a PIA flight and arrested last month, had disclosed that Salman used bank accounts opened in the names of his employee, who were either labourers or low-paid workers. The bureau maintained that Hamza benefited from the money laundering.
Meanwhile, Hamza's counsel insisted on being provided with the FMU report, saying that it was the "foundation of the case".
He contended that NAB did not have authority to investigate money laundering cases. The NAB prosecutor responded that the bureau was investigating cases of similar nature, without specifying which ones.
Hamza's counsel said that the MPA could not be arrested without the magistrate's permission. The court adjourned the hearing until May 28 and extended Hamza's bail until that date.
Read more
On DawnNews
Comments (55) Closed
May 22, 2019 04:24pm
Their corruption & money laundering is coming out of the woodwork!
Recommend
0
May 22, 2019 04:30pm
Shameless people
Recommend
0
May 22, 2019 04:59pm
This Pre-Arrest bail culture should be changed. In west you are a suspect you are taken into custody, granted remind and then sometimes released on bail, charged and has to face the music in the court.
Recommend
0
May 22, 2019 05:06pm
It is about time decisive decisions are made and these people charged.
Recommend
0
May 22, 2019 05:46pm
Fake accounts of employees. Now the government has learned how the Sharifs and Zardaris cheat Pakistan.
Recommend
0
May 22, 2019 05:55pm
They want to come back into power so they can do more looting. The opposition says it is worried about increase in prices. Bring back the money that was allegedly taken from Pakistan and all will be well. IK is right accountability is very important. Look at South Africa or Brazil, corruption is their main problem.
Recommend
0
May 22, 2019 05:56pm
Honestly Corruption Mafias is the word to describe PML-N and PPP. They have caused irreparable damage to our country. In addition the creators of PML-N and PPP are equally responsible for where we stand as a nation
Recommend
0
May 22, 2019 05:56pm
IK government is not incompetent. It is trying to clear the mess, how can that be incompetent.
Recommend
0
May 22, 2019 05:57pm
@Azad j, this is Pakistan. All laws are crafted to protect elite.
Recommend
0
May 22, 2019 06:09pm
He must be arrested
Recommend
0
May 22, 2019 06:16pm
@moeazze, .... Arrested and charged.
Recommend
0
May 22, 2019 06:20pm
I am not surprised by their theft. What surprises me is the people who still give them their votes in the millions.
Recommend
0
May 22, 2019 06:46pm
Hamza is an angel and did not do anything wrong because "... NAB did not have authority to investigate money laundering cases". Do people still need more proofs?
Recommend
0
May 22, 2019 06:49pm
All NAB cases are closed the day person joins the present govt panel.
Firdaus Awan had all cases dropped the day she became information minister. How interesting.
Well done, keep it up.
Recommend
0
May 22, 2019 06:56pm
Shariffs & Family have broken every law of the country where money is involved.
Recommend
0
May 22, 2019 07:05pm
@Azad j, and who will take them into custody? their own people...
Recommend
0
May 22, 2019 07:11pm
@Newborn, imran has ruled for 10 months. 10 months of failure and 3 decades of failure, they can hardly be comparable.
Recommend
0
May 22, 2019 07:15pm
Why he is still free?
Recommend
0
May 22, 2019 07:21pm
@aisha,
Totally agree with you. Poor IK is sorting out the mess NS government left.
Recommend
0
May 22, 2019 07:40pm
@Azad j, exactly. I've been saying for the past many months that there is no concept of pre arrest bail in advanced countries. In the UK people are arrested as a first step to an investigation as you need to get their statement on record before they have a chance to meet the other Suspects and cook up a new story.
Recommend
0
May 22, 2019 07:42pm
I do not believe in NAB now!
Recommend
0
May 22, 2019 07:44pm
People need to wake up to the fact for years the opposition parties have worked hard at money laundering, setting up fake accounts and businesses for self gain which is why they have become super rich and the country poor. The law just needs to deal with this.
Recommend
0
May 22, 2019 07:51pm
@Aamir, So why has Salman and his brother-in-law run away from Pakistan?
Recommend
0
May 22, 2019 07:53pm
It is shame that these corrupt looters do not show any remorse, instead of this Hamza always shows rudely one finger which is taken badly in western society. His name should be on ECL and shouldn't not be allowed to leave Pakistan under the pretext of family visit
Recommend
0
May 22, 2019 07:54pm
@Shah, to the people who give them bail after bail...
Recommend
0
May 22, 2019 08:04pm
Son of a corrupt person Shabaz Shrief, Hamza is lying about his underhanded money laundering activities. He is no politician but a looter of our national wealth. He needs to be in jail!
Recommend
0
May 22, 2019 08:07pm
Shame on him, pretending to be this victim of NAB vendettas, while all this proof continues to roll out.
Recommend
0
May 22, 2019 08:25pm
@aisha, Public perception.
Recommend
0
May 22, 2019 08:25pm
@Newborn,
You cant judge Imran Khan performance in 10 months... compared to the mess the previous leaders created for over 30 years. You are one of the reasons Pakistan is in this fix, people like you have been electing thieves for decades.
Well! once a cancer spreads in the body, it takes some pain and wear and tear to fix it...
Recommend
0
May 22, 2019 08:28pm
@Newborn, I would choose PTI since they are true and loyal to the country, and just like anything else, they will learn but at least we know they have the true intention to put the country back on the path of recovery. Do not expect miracles overnight when the country was looted and plundered for the last 30 years.
Recommend
0
May 22, 2019 08:32pm
If the evidence NAB has is correct, I don’t see hamza’s bail being extended for long
Recommend
0
May 22, 2019 08:48pm
These people hollow out Pakistan from the inside. Punish them if you want to progress
Recommend
0
May 22, 2019 08:49pm
I’m sure he will need medical treatment abroad very soon
Recommend
0
May 22, 2019 08:54pm
The Sad part is people will still vote for these leaders. Uneducated people are ticket to wealth and loot for these leaders
Recommend
0
May 22, 2019 08:58pm
Why are they not being arrested.
Recommend
0
May 22, 2019 09:08pm
Pakistan has to move forward and all money launderers to be put in jail after trial.
Recommend
0
May 22, 2019 11:56pm
@Azad j, Arrest in west is based on the warrant executed by a judge and is taken once the investigation agencies have sufficient evidence against the suspect. Unlike Pakistan where a person is taken into custody (sometime made missing) and then try to find out the evidences. In recent times we have seen everybody getting bail and NAB couldn't find a single evidence worth proving in courts.
Recommend
0
May 23, 2019 12:04am
Is there anyone in the Sharif family who is actually a shareef
Recommend
0
May 23, 2019 12:05am
If Zardari and Nawaz families return the looted wealth our foreign debt will be zero Khushaal Pakistan
Recommend
0
May 23, 2019 12:08am
Watched him lie through his teeth on a recent interview....No shame PLM-N supporters take note.
Recommend
0
May 23, 2019 12:22am
It was a creative corruption scheme, if they could only use that creativity to build the nation instead.
Recommend
0
May 23, 2019 01:18am
So what?
Put your effort and time on other issues
Recommend
0
May 23, 2019 01:28am
NAB hasn't done anything besides these 2 families. There were 500 Pakistanis in Panama leaks. NAB seems to announce things like this on flimsy evidence so far.
Recommend
0
May 23, 2019 02:05am
Punish them if they are criminal but sick of every day spicy news coming out of NAB without any solid evidence.
Recommend
0
May 23, 2019 02:55am
How long we will hear and read these corrupted people how they looted, this a strong corruption mafia even the corruption cases are clear but surprisingly there are still many judges still giving them favors, they still threatening and its becoming clear that these people are above the law
Recommend
0
May 23, 2019 02:59am
@A shah,
thats why in their decades of rule they never built health facilities, they as a common man they shd be treated in pakistan hospitals,
Recommend
0
May 23, 2019 03:25am
Let NAB prove the case, issuing statements is not enough. So far NAB has not able to prove anything in courts
Recommend
0
May 23, 2019 05:48am
All members of the Sharif's are recipients and participants, like the Zardari Bhutto Mafia. Jail them all.
Recommend
0
May 23, 2019 05:54am
@Aamir, who else ??
Recommend
0
May 23, 2019 06:41am
@Straight talk , ...... AND ....... Criminals always keep get away money. Often millions in cash hidden in their houses.
Recommend
0
May 23, 2019 07:16am
@Azad j, You can get out on bail as long as its not a case involving high crime, if it involves corruption of that maginitude, you ain't getting out, who remembers Murdock in United States few years back?
Recommend
0
May 23, 2019 07:24am
@Nejat Askari III, As much as I like to see all these corrupt put behind bars, nothing has been proven as of yet, Zardari is still living large in Sindh and enjoying Iftar parties in his Islamabad palace, Shahbaz Sharif is vacationing in London, I mean seeing doctors, Nawaz Sharif is still working on the courts with his "I'm sick, I miss London" drama. Don't get all excited just yet brother.
Recommend
0
May 23, 2019 07:25am
I don't get to hear if NAB is doing anything apart from investigating politicians.
No investigation on looters at lower levels, bureaucrats without any means of income apart from their salary have luxury cars for each member of the family band properties in millions. No checks are done on that?
Go to any city, you will see luxury cars, properties worth millions, no one is asking any questions that where they are getting this money from, have they contributed a fair share,
NAB is not doing anything about that, are they going around checking each rich household, perhaps NOT, that household might be one their own.
Enough making fool of people, until all of the country have the same Law for the rich and the poor, we'll keep on seeing the bails and extended investigation, justice delayed is justice denied....
Recommend
0
May 23, 2019 07:27am
@Waseem, Does not make a damn worth of difference what people find as proof, what matters is what courts and judges find as proof. Its not people's court dude.
Recommend
0
May 23, 2019 08:08am
Hamza a low IQ incompetent person who only knows how to steal our national wealth needs to be in JAIL. WHY our Government is reluctant to Take Action against him?
What about his fraud father Shabaz Shrief? Where is he now? When is his return?
Recommend
0
