NAB recovers amount through plea bargain

LAHORE National Accountability Bureau (NAB), Lahore started recovering looted Rs67 million from Land Acquisition Collector (LAC), Punjab Highways Department and accomplices by receiving first installment of Rs59.84 million through plea bargain.

Director General NAB Lahore Shahzad Saleem handed over a partial payment cheque for Rs6.1 million to an official from the Punjab government. According to a press release, NAB Lahore received a complaint from a department source regarding misappropriation of Rs67 million approximately, whereas, amount was fraudulently withdrawn on account of land acquisition compensation without awarding an acquisition of land.

Verification against the same launched in 2016 and subsequently, Mian Abdul Rauf ex-LAC and other accomplices Zahoor Ahmed (Girdawar) Muhammad Sharif, Nasim Abbas, Ali Abbas and Muhammad Ali were arrested. 

Later, investigations from the arrested culprits led to arrest of Muhammad Amjad on 9th of June, 2017. Furthermore, NAB filed a reference against the accused in Accountability Court.  Mian Rauf Ahmed, ex-LAC, agreed to return looted money through plea bargain and an amount of Rs59.84 million had been recovered from the accused persons while remaining amount would also be received following the charted plea bargain quarterly installment plan.