Bernd Hildenbrand – the former CEO of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) who went abroad under a special exemption, has failed to come back to Pakistan to face corruption charges against him.
Hildenbrand, a German national, was forced to forgo his position as the CEO of Pakistan International Airlines on charges of corruption. He was relieved of his duties in April 2017.
Charges against him include but are not limited to, the acquisition of a plane by PIA from the Sri Lankan Airlines, at a rate much higher than the prevalent market price. His name was put in the ECL on March 16th.
However, he was given permission by the Ministry of Interior, to travel abroad for thirty days under a special exemption, but was due to return in the first week of June. He has still not returned, despite having assured the authorities that he would, to face the corruption charges against him.
According to details, this exemption was given due to diplomatic pressure.
The memorandum read: “It has been decided to allow a one-time permission to Bernd Eugen Hildenbrand, a Deutsch national and holder of Passport No C8W917M2F, to travel abroad for a period of 30 days from the date of departure.”
Federal Investigation Authority (FIA) is conducting an in-depth investigation on the corruption charges against Hildenbrand.
