Pakistan’s National Accountability Bureau (NAB) has formally initiated the extradition of property tycoon Malik Riaz from the United Arab Emirates (UAE). To help with his return via Interpol, NAB has sent a letter to the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA).
In the Al-Qadir Trust case, former Prime Minister Imran Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi are co-accused along with Malik Riaz of corruption. The Al-Qadir Trust case is the basis for this action, according to a NAB official.
Khawaja Asif, the defense minister, had earlier declared that the Pakistani government would take action to bring Malik Riaz back in accordance with an extradition deal with the United Arab Emirates. Additionally, the NAB has cautioned the public against investing in Malik Riaz’s new luxury apartment complex in Dubai due to allegations of money laundering and the potential for criminal prosecution.
On social media, Malik Riaz responded to NAB’s operations by saying that he is being singled out politically and that the cases against him are fabricated and motivated by blackmail. He claimed that conducting business in Pakistan has grown more challenging and that he is unwilling to testify under duress.
Currently living in Dubai, Malik Riaz is the chairman of Bahria Town, which bills itself as Asia’s largest private housing society and is one of Pakistan’s biggest real estate developers.
When a Pakistani court earlier this month sentenced former Prime Minister Imran Khan to 14 years in prison and his wife, Bushra Bibi, to 7 years in the Al-Qadir Trust case, it received a lot of attention. Imran Khan has denied the accusations, claiming that he and his wife were only trustees and were not aware of any personal gain, while the prosecution claims that Imran Khan accepted land as a bribe from Malik Riaz when he was prime minister.
The matter came to light in 2019 when Malik Riaz’s UK bank accounts and a £190 million house in a posh part of London were frozen by the UK’s National Crime Agency (NCA). Later, the Pakistani government received this sum back as part of an arrangement. However, Pakistani officials assert that the funds were utilized to cover Malik Riaz’s judicial fines, which they believe to be unlawful, rather than being placed in the national treasury.
Imran Khan and Malik Riaz have both denied any accusations of wrongdoing in this instance. Through the NAB and FIA, the Pakistani government is now moving forward with legal action against Malik Riaz by arranging for his return to Pakistan.
The process has begun to bring Malik Riaz back to Pakistan from Dubai through Interpol.
