Corruption in Zarco Exchange Case

[sparklingway]

Zarco, FIA official are partners in Rs 700 million scam
Saturday, April 10, 2010
By Abdul Sattar Khan

LAHORE: The re-investigation of Zarco Exchange Company by the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), which shifted blame of the flight of capital amounting up to Rs700 million from the Chief Executive of Zarco Syed Lakhat-e-Husnain, to its employees, became possible because a senior most director of the FIA happened to be the partner of the same Exchange Company, The News has learnt reliably.

Information acquired by this scribe shows that Impex Trading Ltd UK is a company owned by PSP officer Chaudhry Sajjad Ahmed’s brother, who is posted as Director Technical Wing in the FIA Headquarter, as its Master Agent in the United Kingdom. Secondly Sunrise Associates, which is owned by Sajjad Ahmed’s nephew, is a franchise of Zarco Exchange Company in Lalamusa, Pakistan.

Scrutiny of the record revealed that Ch Sajjad Ahmed Director FIA Technical Wing played a key role in finalizing the master agent deal and franchise agreements with Chief Executive Zarco Lakhat-e-Husnain.

When the FIA arrested the owner and other accused of Zarco in August last year, Sunrise Associates filed a claim with the FIA to ensure Zarco paid back the money, which the management had usurped. On one hand Ch Sajjad Ahmed played his role ensuring re-investigation in Zarco case, which resulted in projecting the principal accused Lakhat-e-Husnain as innocent, while on the other Sunrise Association, at the time of filing claim with the FIA categorically held Lakhat-e-Husnain responsible for all the mess stating: “We request you to enforce Zarco Exchange Company to pay back the usurped money by Lakhat-e-Husnain, who is holding 99.99 per cent shares in the company.”

Details containing in eleven emails between Zarco management and Ch Sajjad Ahmed on the issue of approving rights of Master Agent of Zarco to Impex Trading Ltd UK as well as approving franchise to Sunrise Associates in Lalamusa (Pakistan) clearly revealed the level of interest shown by both the sides to become associates.

Seven emails were in context with franchise deal with Zarco while four emails were exchanged to finalize the deal for availing master agency of Zarco in UK. In one such email dated 5th May 2007 Lakhat-e-Husnain instructed his Head of Compliance Shahid Butt to expedite the approval of a franchise of Ch Sajjad Ahmed in Lalamusa. It reads, “The matter as extremely important as his brother ex-minister Ch Ejaz Ahmed has really done him great favour during his recent trip to UK where his relative heading a bank. I really need deadline and I will request you to please use your personal influence to get this done”.

The same day Butt wrote to Lakhat informing him that he was already pursuing the matter vigorously. On 1st June 2007 Butt wrote to Ch Ejaz Ahmed, Sajjad’s brother, informing him “after vigorous persuasion and as advised by our worthy CEO we have now succeeded to obtain State Bank of Pakistan permission to enter into franchise agreement with Sunrise Associates Lalamusa”.

Finally, on June 23rd 2007 franchise agreement between Sunrise Associates and Zarco came into effect.

Lakhat instructed Mubashar Hayat, Company Secretary Zarco on 15th September 2007 to expedite the matter, as “this is important with reference to our strategy to appoint them as our master agent in UK”. Finally, on 12th October 2007, Mohammad Kamran head of UK Zarco operations while giving the reference of their meeting with Ch Sajjad on October 11 submitted important documents, which subsequently resulted in reaching an agreement with Impex Trading. The profit sharing ratio (financial feasibility retail) between Zarco and Impex Trading would be 45 per cent going to Zarco and 55 per cent to Impex. The 55 per cent profit of Impex was further divided with 25 per cent going to Impex (Master Agent) while the remainder 75 per cent was further divided into their sub agents in UK.

On 20th August 2008, Ch Sajjad once again emailed Shahid Butt to tell him about his posting as Director FIA HQ Islamabad and his telephone numbers were 9251926, 9261194. Five days later Lakhat instructed Butt to congratulate him writing, “I will also call him to congratulate him, please advise his cell number”.

It had been only after two years that Ch Sajjad had the chance to return Lakhat’s favours when he became DG FIA during March 7, 2010 to March 20, 2010 in absence of the incumbent DG Zafarullah Khan. Ironically the re investigation of Zarco case, which conveniently shifted the blame to Mubashar Hayyat and other employees of Zarco, was carried out during 14th March to 18th March.

DG FIA Zafarullah Khan, under unexplained circumstances tried to protect Ch Sajjad when it was time to fill para-wise comments before Lahore High Court by stating, “It is further submitted for the sake of clarity that DIG Ch Sajjad Ahmed is posted as Director Technical in FIA HQ, having no concern whatsoever with the proceedings of the cases. The said officer, however, looked after the work of DG FIA being the senior most official available at the station, during my visit abroad from 7-3-2010 to 20-3-2010 and he did not issue any direction in Zarco cases”.

Contrary to this statement of DG FIA Zafarullah, the report prepared by Niamat Ali, Inspector FIA (SIU), who was associated with the re-investigation under the supervision of Director SIU Liaqat Saleemi, revealed that a letter dated 22-3-2010 issued by Ch Sajjad Ahmad, which was duly received in SIU, with the directions to accelerate probe to the specific allegations made by the petitioner Mrs Kausar Bano.

Inspector Niamat Ali in the same letter revealed, “In the light of directions received from Ch Sajjad Ahmed, investigations of the case is being carried out within the parameters of task entrusted to SIU and grievances of petitioner Kausar Bano is being looked into as per law”. This shows that Ch Sajjad Ahmed became instrumental to take care of the ‘specific allegations’ leveled principal accused Lakhat’s wife. This also shows that Ch Sajjad wanted to complete the task during his tenure as DG FIA to re-structure the investigation.

Despite repeated attempts on the part of this scribe, Ch Sajjad Ahmed was not available for comment despite repeated promises for a call back.

 

[VrSoLdIeRs]

hopeless!!! all of them.... when your country needs you most these are the back-stabbers!!!!

 

[sparklingway]

Zarco boss misused his police connection ​

By Abdul Sattar Khan

LAHORE: Syed Lakhat-e-Husnain, Chief Executive of Zarco Exchange Company, who happens to be the principal accused in a million-dollar money laundering scam, had earlier been involved in getting arrested by the Punjab Police those of his employees who had been cooperating with the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) inquiry team and exposing the misdeeds of their boss.

However, timely intervention by the Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif not only paved the way for the release of the arrested Zarco company employees but also resulted in a disciplinary action against all those police officials who had been misusing their authority to appease Lakhat, who is the brother of a former Inspector General of the Police, Punjab. The five arrested employees of the Zarco were in custody of the Punjab Police for 48 hours prior to their release.

The Punjab chief minister subsequently ordered an enquiry into these arrests and entrusted a former IGP Punjab Police Jehanzeb Burki with the task of ascertaining the facts.

As per the inquiry report, the Capital City Police Lahore Chief Pervez Rathore had ordered registration of the case against the Zarco employees on a complaint lodged by Lakhat-e-Husnain, the real brother of Additional IGP Punjab Syed Azhar Hassan Nadeem, without producing any evidence against the accused.

The enquiry report quoting the investigating officer of Lahore police says, when the nominated accused Mubashar Hayat, Imran Iqbal, Nazar Abbas Zaidi, Ahmed Shehzad and Shakeel Khan were examined by the police, they stated “Lakhat-e-Husnain had been drawing out his and other people’s money from the company accounts and had been transferring it into his personal account maintained in the USA. The customers of Zarco used to quarrel with them when the amounts remitted by them were not delivered.

“They (the employees) had also not been paid their salaries for the last 2/3 months. The employees held a meeting amongst themselves and decided to demand an amount of Rs85 million from Lakhat-e-Husnain to enable them to pay the amounts due to various customers”.

In his findings, Jehanzeb Burki stated, “Lakhat-e-Husnain got registered the case and directions to this effect were issued by City Police Chief Pervez Rathor.

It is also obvious that Lakhat-e-Husnain enjoyed considerable influence with the Lahore police as the nominated accused were manhandled by him in the presence of SHO Civil Lines Mr Taimur.

Notwithstanding registration of the case, the investigating officer including the SHO were required by the law to ensure that sufficient evidence had been produced by the complainant before taking them into custody”.

The enquiry report further says, “Without bringing on file any oral or documentary evidence the employees of Zarco were brought to the police station in the brutal manner by Lakhat-e-Husnain, who himself is the chief suspect in the case being investigated against him by FIA Lahore.

It is a measure of the influence exercised by Chief Executive of Zarco Exchange Company Lakhat-e-Husnain that he was not only allowed to bring the accused persons to the police station where they were kept under illegal confinement for nearly 48 hours but were also manhandled and physically beaten up, abused and threatened by Lakhat-e-Husnain in the presence of SHO Civil Lines”.

“Apparently, the criminal case was got registered by Lakhat-e-Husnain in order to pressurize and blackmail his employees to prevent them from disclosing details of his criminal activities to the FIA authorities.”

Forwarding its recommendations, the enquiry report suggested, “It would be appropriate to initiate strict disciplinary proceedings against the SHO Inspector Yaqoob, SI Taimur, Incharge Investigation SI Allah Rakha, ASI Mohammad Ashiq for keeping the five accused persons under illegal confinement and allowing infliction of physical torture on them at the hands of Lakhat-e-Husnain.

Moreover, Sohail Akhtar Sukhera SP (Operations) Civil Lines must also be called for his failure to properly supervise the police officials working directly under his control”.

Accepting the recommendations of the enquiry report, Chief Minister Punjab Shahbaz Sharif immediately ordered the IGP Punjab to forfeit one-year services of all the police officials against whom disciplinary proceedings have already been recommended.

 

[pak-marine]

great news .... happy these corrupt pigs are getting named and shamed , hope GOP busts them all.