Pakistan’s Federal Investigation Agency, which is probing Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif and his son and Punjab Chief Minister Hamza Shahbaz in a multi-billion money laundering case, on Saturday requested the court to allow their arrest for further investigation. did.
The court, however, extended his pre-arrest bail till June 11.
The FIA also filed an interim investigation report against Premier and other suspects in the 14 billion rupees (US$75 million) money laundering case.
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Shahbaz and Hamza appeared in the special court amid tight security.
“An FIA prosecutor presented an interim investigation report in court and sought the arrest of prime suspects Prime Minister Shahbaz and Punjab Chief Minister Hamza – arguing that their custody is needed for further investigation in the case as they continue to investigate. have not joined and cooperated with the investigators,” a court official told PTI.
Advocate Amjad Parvez, the Prime Minister’s counsel, strongly objected to the FIA’s plea and termed it as a “false claim of the agency”.
He said the FIA had already investigated the father and son when they were in Lahore jail.
He said his client had not only joined the investigation while he was in prison but also appeared before investigators at the FIA office.
“The matter is pending for the last one and a half years and the investigation by the FIA against Shahbaz and Hamza has been completed,” Parvez argued.
He further said that the matter is politically motivated which was set up by the previous government of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf with only one purpose to send them behind bars.
In the hearing last week, Shahbaz had told the court, ‘What to talk about the money laundering allegations against me, when I was the Chief Minister of Punjab for 10 years or more, I never got salary and other facilities. God has made me prime minister. of this country. This money laundering case against me and my sons has been established on political grounds as there is no ground and evidence to support the allegations of money laundering against us.”
Presiding Judge Ejaz Awan re-issued the arrest warrant for the premier’s second son Suleiman Shahbaz in the case and adjourned the hearing till June 11. Suleman is absconding in the UK since 2019.
Deposed Prime Minister Imran Khan had questioned Suleiman’s presence in Shahbaz’s delegation to meet the Turkish president in Ankara this week.
Shahbaz and his sons Hamza and Suleman were booked by the FIA in November 2020 under various sections of the Prevention of Corruption Act and Anti-Money Laundering Act.
The FIA investigation said that it has allegedly unearthed 28 benami accounts of the Shahbaz family, through which 14 billion Pakistani rupees were withdrawn from 2008 to 2018.
The FIA investigates the money trail of 17,000 credit transactions.
According to the allegations, the amount was kept in “hidden accounts” and given to Shahbaz in his personal capacity.
Since stepping down as Prime Minister, Imran has been questioning Shahbaz as to how a person facing money laundering charges can become Prime Minister.
He calls Shahbaz the “crime minister” and vows to continue his struggle to send the “imported government” home.
He has also blamed the US for ending his government after deciding to visit Russia against his will.