MCB Accused of Money Laundering For Sharif Family
The dubious transactions were made from the various branches of MCB in Lahore and Chiniot from the accounts operated between 2008 and 2018
Muslim Commercial Bank (MCB) owned by Mian Mansha has been accused of money laundering for the Sharif family which bodes ill for Pakistan in Financial Action and Task Force (FATF).
Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) sent a notice to MCB for details of fictitious accounts used for laundering illegal money of Sharif family.
The dubious transactions were made from the various branches of MCB in Lahore and Chiniot from the accounts operated between 2008 and 2018.
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FIA said that it found during the investigations the bank officials were aware of the fictitious accounts, made in the names of peons and other low-wage employees, and the money laundering of Rs 25 billion, so far detected, was done for the Sharif family.
The letter named Asim Khan Suri, who has been booked by FIA, and Azhar Mehmood for pressurizing the bank managers and other officials.
Both officials instructed their subordinates to suppress and conceal the facts regarding the opening or operations of fake accounts used for money laundering.
The agency advised MCB to immediately disconnect both top officials from the management.
However, the bank didn’t comply with the instructions of FIA after which Asim Khan Suri was nabbed.
But, the agency has left some loopholes in the case as it has not sealed any of the branches of MCB which remained involved in the malpractice as detected in the investigation.
Also, it did not write to the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) for providing records of the dubious accounts but rather approached MCB for it and sought data since 2004.
The experts say that the development can prove to be damaging for Pakistan, which is vying to get out of the FATF grey list, as the family of an ex-prime minister is involved in money laundering.
