Assets beyond means case: Court sends Khawaja Asif to jail on 14-day judicial remand

Court rejects anti-graft body’s plea seeking extension in Asif’s physical remand

LAHORE:

An accountability court in Lahore on Friday sent Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) senior leader Khawaja Asif to jail on 14-day judicial remand in assets beyond means case.

The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) had arrested the former foreign minister and the acting leader of the opposition in the National Assembly from the federal capital on December 29 last year.

In today’s hearing, AC rejected the anti-graft body’s investigating officer’s plea seeking extension in Asif’s physical remand for further investigation.

“Khawaja Asif had also set up a restaurant abroad, and he has stated that his salary and income from a restaurant is Rs136 million,” the investigating officer prayed and added that Khawaja Sultan had deposited Rs20 million in Asif’s account.

On January 16, it was reported that that NAB Lahore summoned the managing director of International Mechanical and Electrical Company (IMECO), a UAE-based international firm, in connection with the assets beyond means case against Asif.

The regional bureau of the anti-graft body asked Elias Salloum to appear before a combined investigation team (CIT) at NAB Complex Thokar Niaz Beg on January 28 along with all relevant documents.

Read More: Khawaja Asif remanded into NAB custody for two weeks

Asif submitted a copy of a letter issued by the company that it may appear at a forum regarding his employment in the firm.

During investigations, the letter read, accused Asif had claimed that he was an Iqama holder in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) from 2004 to 2018 and remained an employee of IMECO as a legal adviser/consultant. He has claimed Rs136 million as salary income from the said employment.

The documents sought by NAB include IMECO's incorporation/registration documents with UAE authorities, certified financial statements from 2004 to 2019 filed with UAE authorities.

NAB had alleged that the accused Asif has allegedly committed offences of corruption and corrupt practices as defined u/s (v) of NAO-1999 and Section -3 of Anti Money Laundering Act (AMLA) 2010 as he accumulated assets disproportionate to his known sources of income and laundered such assets by concealing the origin and nature of assets.