ISLAMABAD – Panama Case Joint Investigation Team has recorded another statement of the official witness of the Hudaibia Paper Mills case.
Former Chairman National Accountability Bureau (NAB) Lt-General (retd) Syed Amjad Hussain appeared before the six-member Joint Investigation Team formed to probe offshore assets of the Sharif family here on Thursday.
Hussain, in his maiden appearance recorded his statement regarding Hudaibiya Paper Mills case with the JIT at the Federal Judicial Academy.
Hudiibiya Paper Mills case was among the others initiated against Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif in 2000 during the regime of former president Gen. (retd) Pervaiz Musharraf.
It is interesting to note that NAB had filed two references in the Hudaibya Paper Mills case. Incumbent Finance Minister Ishaq Dar was nominated as an accused in the initial reference. But NAB in its final reference excluded his name after he recorded a confessional statement.
“There was an unexplained investment of Rs642.743 million appearing in books of the mill as share deposit money. The same belonged to the directors/shareholders and beneficial owners of the company, which they had fraudulently amassed under the garb of foreign equity investment,” said the final reference.
The reference suggested that the company in 1999 settled its loan with the London-based Al Towfeek Company for Investment Funds by making a payment of $8.7 million and the source of this payment also appeared to be doubtful.
“It appears from the evidence that in order to launder and conceal their ill-gotten wealth, both the Sharif brothers appeared to have fraudulently opened fictitious foreign currency accounts in the names of various individuals with the active connivance of some of their close associates and employees” it said.
“The amounts that have been deposited in the said accounts stand unexplained and appear to be beyond the known source of income of the accused individuals,” the reference added.
The Supreme Court’s special bench has directed the JIT to finalize its report till July 10.