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Ex-military men in Dubai leaks
Note: A mere mention in the data is not evidence in itself of financial crime or tax fraud. Nor does the data contain information such as residence status, sources of income, tax declarations of rental income or capital gains. Names of properties linked to senior political or military officials have been mentioned in the public interest.
RETIRED military officials, some of whom have passed away, also appear as listed owners till the spring of 2022 in the Dubai property leaks. Many were visible in the data as their ownership documents included their rank.
For properties purchased off plan, the market value of the completed property is mentioned, but buyers may have paid only a certain percentage of the total property value as a down payment.
Retired Lt Gen Alam Jan Mahsud (now deceased) and his spouse appear in the leaks as listed owners of three properties. However, neither of them are owners of those properties today. Transaction data obtained by Norwegian financial outlet E24 and Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) shows that the property, a three-bedroom apartment in Al Hamri, was priced in 2009 at AED 1,150,000 or $313,000 (calculated at the current exchange rate of 3.6 dirhams to a dollar) and sold for a little over half a million dollars in 2021.
A number of retired members of the security establishment show up in the data
Retired Lt Gen Shafaat Ullah Shah, a senior military officer during the tenure of former dictator Gen Pervez Musharraf (whose name also appears in the data), is a listed owner in the leaks for a property purchased in 2015. Dubai Land Department (DLD) records show he still owned the property as of February 2024 alongside his son. Mr Shafaat Ullah Shah served as military secretary to Mr Musharraf, as corps commander in Lahore, and as chief of logistics staff at the general headquarters in Rawalpindi. The purchase data obtained by OCCRP shows that this property, a two-bedroom apartment in Barsha Heights, was purchased for $139,398 in 2015. In response to questions sent by Dawn, Mr Shafaat Ullah Shah said that all assets owned by him or his immediate family members, as well as income generated on them, were disclosed to regulators, including the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR).
Retired Maj Gen Syed Ehtasham Zamir, a former head of ISI’s political wing who passed away in 2015, appears as a listed owner for the 2020-2022 period in the leaks, but is no longer the owner of this property. His name appears in connection with a studio apartment which was priced in 2008 for $54,181 and sold in August 2019 for $63,438.
Mr Zamir’s wife made a down payment for a three-bedroom off-plan apartment in the Address Harbour Point Tower, which had a market price of $877,761 in January 2018. However, in a response to questions sent by Dawn, his son said the property was sold for around $160,000 in September 2021. He added that his parents’ properties were bought after their Pakistan home was sold, and that all income was declared to the FBR and is part of army records.
His children, a son and two daughters, are listed owners of a two-bedroom apartment in Marina Arcade purchased in July 2017 for $440,382. The total rental income generated from this property for the period from July 2019 to July 2024 is $130,141. They are still owners of that property today.
Retired Lt Gen Muhammad Akram is the listed owner of two studio apartments in the Elite Residences 4 building. Mr Akram is no longer the current owner of the properties, which were sold in the same period to one individual. Purchase data shows that both studios were bought in September 2013 for around $150,000 each and later sold in 2022 for an unknown amount.
Retired Maj Gen Ghazanfar Ali Khan appears in the leaks as the listed owner of a residential unit in Al Warsan First. As of March 2024, he was still listed in the DLD system as the owner of this property. Transaction data shows the property was purchased in October 2010 for $81,406. The rental income generated from it between December 2013 and February 2024 was $64,117.
The late Gen Musharraf and his wife are listed as owners of one property, with his spouse showing as its present owner. The three-bedroom apartment in Sadaf 2 appears to have been purchased in April 2012 for $449,233
Retired Brig Nadir Mir is listed in the data as the owner of a studio apartment in Al Warsan First. The DLD search shows he still owned the property as of March 2024. The property was bought in March 2010 for $54,110. From 2014 to 2023, the listed rental income for the property is $33,052.
The late Gen Musharraf and his wife are listed as owners of one property, with his spouse showing as its present owner. The three-bedroom apartment in Sadaf 2 appears to have been purchased in April 2012 for $449,233.
Ex DG military land, retired Maj Gen Syed Najamul Hassan Shah, is also listed as the owner of an off-plan property in Al Saqran Tower. The property’s market price in June 2012 was $361,942. The DLD system shows this property is still owned by him today. He is also linked to two other properties in Al Thanya Fifth Al Shera and in Al Hebiah Third, but neither appears to be owned by him today.
Retired Maj Azizul Aman Zuberi and a family member are listed owners of a property in Shakespeare Circus 1, which was valued at $147,797 in November 2013 and sold in April 2022.
Retired Major Gen Ausaf Ali is listed as owner of a studio apartment in Al Yufra 2, and still owns this property according to the DLD system. It was purchased in February 2016 for $139,298.
Retired Maj Gen Raja Arif Nazir, HI(M) is listed as owner against two off-plan properties. These include a one-bedroom residential unit in Damac Hills Artesia Tower valued in February 2015 at $311,931. And the second is a one-bedroom apartment in Golf Promenade that was valued at $342,791 in June 2014. For the latter, a rental income of $36,755 was generated between mid-2021 and mid-2024. Mr Nazir still owned these properties as of March 2024, according to the DLD.
Retired Air Vice Marshal Khalid Masood Rajput’s name also appeared in the leaks.
Published in Dawn, May 15th, 2024
Header photo by Ole Martin Wold
This is part of a series of articles on Dubai Unlocked.
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