Rs7b weapons scam: Ghazan Hoti refuses to handover passwords for his mobile, email

Accountability court extends his remand, giving NAB 10 more days to investigate.


Our Correspondent April 27, 2014
Former chief minister Amir Haider Hoti. PHOTO: FILE

PESHAWAR:


Ghazan Hoti, who has been accused of receiving kickbacks in a Rs7 billion weapons procurement scam, is not cooperating and has refused to share his email and mobile passwords. This was shared by National Accountability Bureau’s (NAB) special prosecutor Lajbar Khan at a hearing on Saturday to extend Ghazan’s physical remand.


Former chief minister Amir Haider Hoti’s brother Ghazan Hoti was produced amid tight security before the accountability court of Judge Muhammad Ibrahim Khan to get his remand extended for 14 days. Instead, the court handed him over to NAB Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) for 10. Ghazan was arrested on April 15 for his alleged involvement in a weapons scam worth billions of rupees.

Khan told the court Ghazan was not helping them get information necessary for the enquiry. “The suspect is not providing his email and mobile passwords.”

The prosecutor went on to inform the court that Ghazan’s email address and mobile are being probed by the NAB’s forensic cybercrime branch. It will take some time before reports are received on both of them, added Lajbar, justifying the demand for the 14 day extension.

Ghazan’s lawyer Qazi Jawad Ihsanullah, however, opposed the extension, arguing his client was not in the country at the time the weapons in question were contracted.  The passport of the accused was produced as evidence but it was rejected because the same claim was made at the Peshawar High Court hearing and was not accepted.

Ghazan’s arrest was made after the PHC refused to extend his pre-arrest bail which was granted to him on April 1.

Haider Hoti’s brother has been accused of taking Rs19.5 million in kickbacks from contractors for weapons and other equipment for the police department in 2008-10. NAB had filed a reference of Rs2.3 billion of embezzlement and charged ten people.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 27th, 2014.

COMMENTS (3)

Peshawarite | 9 years ago | Reply

Its not only him who took kickbacks, but a bunch of other police officers. One such element is the head of FC constabulary Majeed Marwat. He took kickbacks to the tune of 26 crore rupees in this scam.

Abubakar | 9 years ago | Reply

Hack and get his passwords if he doesn't want to provide the details of them in peaceful way. Or Implement Protection of Pakistan ordinance on him and what about considering him for a physical remand for 90 days at unknown place without specific reasons.

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