Money laundering case: FIA summons Zardari, Faryal today

ISLAMABAD: The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has summoned Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Co-Chairman Asif Ali Zardari and his sister Faryal Talpur to record their statements in the money laundering case on Saturday.

Both the leaders were summoned by the agency's commercial banking circle, the FIA authorities told the Geo News. The FIA had previously declared former president Zardari and Talpur absconders in the money laundering case.

The FIA inquiry started when the financial monitoring unit of the State Bank of Pakistan generated a 'suspicious transaction report' in January this year regarding 10 bank accounts. Sources maintain that over 20 ‘benami’ accounts at a private bank were opened in 2013, 2014 and 2015 from where suspicious transactions worth billions of rupees were made. The amount according to FIA sources is said to be black money gathered from various kickbacks, commissions and bribes. But despite these huge transactions, the banks never reported them to the authorities including the FIA.