Laundered amount may go up to Rs70 bn

ISLAMABAD: Keeping in view voluminous record fetched from different sources by investigators -- Director General of Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) Bashir Memon formed a Panama-like Joint Investigation Team (JIT) to probe around 65 fake accounts where volume of illegally parked amount could reach up to Rs70 billion.

“The volume of laundered amount, which was earlier found to be Rs35 billion, might go up to Rs70 billion. We are going to fetch details of all suspicious transactions from the Financial Monitoring Unit, State Bank of Pakistan and four other private banks,” claimed an investigator who spoke to this correspondent on condition of anonymity. The JIT, comprising seven senior officers and also supported by 14 officers from different departments, is being headed by Additional Director General FIA Dr Najaf Quli Mirza, who is a relative of former interior minister Zulfiqar Mirza.

The FIA claimed that the list of credit depositors goes up from 15 to around two dozen. A sum of Rs4,431,545,792 wascredited and routed through different fake accounts, according to the investigation report which continued to reveal that Zain Malik deposited Rs750,000,000, M/s Sujawal Agri Farms (Pvt) Ltd Rs50,500,000, M/s Tando Allahyar Sugar Mills (Pvt) Ltd Rs238,446,000, M/s Omni (Pvt) Ltd Rs50,000,000, M/s Agro Farms Thatta (Pvt) Ltd Rs17,000,000, M/s Alfa Zulu Co (Pvt) Ltd Rs22,500,000, Haji Mureed Akbar (banker on behalf of contractor), Rs20,000,000, M/s Sher Muhammad Mugheri & Co (contractor) Rs50,000,000, MN Sardar Muhammad Asharaf Baloch (Pvt) Ltd (contractor) Rs100,000,000, M/s A-One Intl Rs184,506,490, M/s Lucky International Rs305,000,000, M/s Logistic Trading (1.I.Chundrigar) Rs145,000,000, M/s lqbal Metals, Rs156,380,086, MN Royal International Rs185,000,000 and NI/s Umair Associates deposited Rs581,200,000.

Investigators also confided to the Geo News that the list of beneficiaries jumped up to 20 companies and individuals. The investigation report named beneficiaries who received payments were Nasser Abdullah Lootah, Chainnan Summit Bank, Rs2, 492,000,000, M/s Ansari Sugar Mills (Pvt) Ltd (Anwar Majeed). Ali Kama Rs73, 782, 303, M/s Omni Polymer Packages (Pvt) Ltd (Abdul Ghani Majeed) Rs5,000,000, M/s Pak Ethanol (Pvt) Ltd (Mustafa Z Majeed and Abdul Ghani Majeed Rs15,000,000, M/s Chamber Sugar Mills (Pvt) (Anwar Majeed, Nimr Majeed) Rs200,000,000, M/s Agro Farms Thalia (Pvt) Ltd (Anwar Majeed, Nazli Majeed Rs5,700,000, M/s Zardari Group (Pvt) Ltd (Asif Ali Zardari, Faryal Talpur, etc. Rs15,000,000, M/s Parthenon (Pvt) Ltd (1qbal Khan Noori) Rs500,000, M/s A-One Int Rs575,249, M/s Lucky International Rs107,200,000, M/s Logistic Trading Rs145,000,000, M/s Royal International Rs285,000,000 and M/s Umair Associates received around Rs801,000,000. Investigators further revealed that the illegally parked amount which is in billions was used in purchasing properties in Dubai accordingly.

About the role of accused persons, the FIA investigation report exclusively obtained by Geo News revealed that Anwar Majeed, who is the owner of Omni Group of Industries, was a major beneficiary of this laundered amount and now fled Pakistan. On the directions of their employers namely Khawaja Anwer Majid, Abdul Ghani Majeed opened fake bank accounts in connivance with bankers. Anwer Majeed is director of Khoski Sugar Mills, Agro Farms Thatta Pvt Ltd, Ansari Sugar Mills (Pvt) Ltd, Tando Allayar Sugar Mills (Pvt) Ltd and Chamber Sugar Mills. Fifteen (15) cheques amounting to Rs238,446,000 have been found credited in the account No 0200129022 UBL Avari Tower Branch and maintained in the name of Tando Allahyar Sugar Mills (Pvt) Ltd. M/s Ansari Sugar Mills Abdul Ghani Majeed, credited Rs73,782,303 and Chamber Sugar Mills received Rs200,000,000 and an amount of Rs2,492 million credited from the account of 'A-One International' to the account of Naseer Abdullah Lootah (Chairman Summit Bank) was also transferred on the directions of sponsors/directors of the Omni Group.

Abdul Ghani received a huge amount worth billions in accounts of Omni Polymer Packages (Pvt) Ltd, Khoski Sugar Mills (Pvt) Ltd, Tando Allayar Sugar Mills (Pvt) Ltd and Pak Ethanol (Pvt) Ltd. Aslam Masood who is the CFO of various companies of Omni Group provided the signed Account Opening Form to the bankers of Summit Bank for opening of account of 'A-One International'. Besides, he is also the signatory of account titled as 'Agro Farms Thatta Pvt Ltd'.

Noreen Sultan, who was the then relationship manager at Summit Bank, admitted the signatures, also facilitated the opening of account of A-One International and facilitated operations of the accounts for Directors Managers Employees of Omni Group. Erum Agee acted (02 accounts in the name of Ibrahim Linkers) and admitted to have opened account at Arif Habib Bank (now Summit Bank) but disowned A/c Na. 0354-151324-1000 at Sindh Bank, Shahbar.

Investigation report further revealed that it has come on record that the business addresses mentioned in the accounts of lqbal Metals, Logistic Trading and Royal International, A-One International, Ibrahim Linkers and Umair Associates are of International Business Centre & Shopping Centre, Abdullah Haroon Road, Karachi, which is owned by M/s Parthenon Pvt Ltd. Besides, funds were also transferred into the account of M/s Parthenon Pvt. Ltd from these accounts.