PESHAWAR: An Accountability Court on Saturday handed over four accused to the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) on a five-day physical remand in connection with the Kohistan mega scandal of over Rs40 billion.
With the new arrests, a total of eight accused have been apprehended in the case, including two government employees, two bankers, and four contractors so far.
AC Judge Muhammad Zafar was hearing the case where four accused named district accounts officer Shafiqur Rehman, employee of the Accountant General’s Office Fazal Hussain, bank manager Tanveer and contractor Riaz were produced in the court.
According to NAB Deputy Prosecutor General Muhammad Ali, the accused had illegally withdrawn over Rs40 billion from government accounts. He told the court this was one of the mega corruption scandals in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s history and that NAB had already recovered billions of rupees, though the investigation was still ongoing.
He requested an extension in their remand to continue interrogation.
Upon this, the court granted an additional five-day physical remand for all four accused.
The NAB had so far arrested eight accused and recovered assets worth Rs25 billion, including luxurious houses, high-end 77 vehicles, sprawling bungalows and apartments across Pakistan and Rs1 billion in cash.
Similarly, Rs5 billion also frozen in bank accounts
According to NAB sources, more arrests were expected in the ongoing investigation.
Meanwhile, PTI leaders Azam Swati and Jibran have obtained relief from the Peshawar High Court, which instructed NAB not to arrest them but allowed their inclusion in the investigation.
This scandal is being termed a landmark case in the province’s accountability efforts.