Shafaqn Pakistan:A day after Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) President Shehbaz Sharif accused the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government of maligning him, Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Accountability Barrister Shahzad Akbar said that the PML-N chief was at the helm of a ‘sophisticated money-laundering network’ operated from the Chief Minister’s Secretariat during his tenure in Punjab.
Addressing a press conference along with Communication Minister Murad Saeed, Akbar claimed that “a sum of over Rs7 billion had been laundered by just one company Good Nature Trading Company through 200 fake Telegraphic Transfer (TTs)”.
“The assets of Suleman Shehbaz had increased by over 8,000 times over the past decade,” he added.
He said that a “new business empire was established [by Sharifs] by utilising the corruption amount through a network of fake TTs, which was totally separate from the family’s business of Ittefaq Group”.
Sharing details of the alleged money laundering, he said that Shehbaz established a “fake company [named as] Good Nature Trading Company and appointed his front men Nisar Gill as Director Political Affairs in CM Secretariat and Ali Ahmed as Director Policy CM Punjab”.
“These two individuals laundered money on Shehbaz’s behalf,” claimed the PM’s aide, adding that the company allegedly managed by Suleman was involved in business transactions of Rs7 billion.
According to Akbar, two more persons, Shoaib Qamar and Mansoor Anwar, were allegedly involved in the alleged money laundering network as “cash boys”.
“They withdrew Rs2.1 billion cash from the account of Good Nature Company. Rs16 million were deposited in the account of Shehbaz Sharif, who transferred them to [wife] Tehmina Durrani and the same amount was used for purchasing property in Whispering Pines Villas,” he claimed.
“The same cash boys deposited Rs25 million to Suleman’s account after withdrawing them from the Good Nature Company,” he added.