- British newspaper says Nawaz and his family used dirty money to purchase at least 21 UK properties on top of Avenfield flats
- PML-N condemns report, says news story at this juncture attempt to deprive Nawaz, family of their fundamental right of self-defence
The total value of the properties of former prime minister Nawaz Sharif and his family is estimated at £32 million with London’s swankiest addresses, revealed Daily Mail.
According to the revelations, Avenfield House is where super-rich Nawaz Sharif has lived when in London since 1993. He shares this property with his two sons Hassan and Hussain, his daughter Maryam and son-in-law Captain (r) Safdar.
These apartments were constructed after four luxury flats were knocked together. It is just the kind of property that Russian oligarchs possess in recent years, it said.
The report also claimed that Nawaz and his family used dirty money to purchase at least 21 UK properties on top of the Avenfield flats, most at equally grand Central London locations, in Mayfair, Chelsea and Belgravia.
The total value of the properties is estimated at least £32 million.
“The family has made huge profits from other sites which have not figured in court – such as the swankiest address of all, at One Hyde Park Place, which Nawaz Sharif’s son Hassan sold for £43 million. The properties are registered via a bewildering network of companies, trusts and bank accounts,” the newspaper exposed.
Untangling the web of the Sharifs’ British real estate portfolio is not easy. The properties are registered via a bewildering network of companies, trusts and bank accounts.
For the past few months, the Sharifs are facing a trial related to Avenfield flats and other references in an accountability court. The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) prosecutor has alleged the ex-PM of making the property with dirty money.
The Sharifs have denied any wrongdoing.
The verdict of Avenfield reference is likely to be announced this week. If found guilty, Sharifs’ assets will be seized while they will also face fines and jail sentences.
Meanwhile, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Imran Khan once again lashed out at former prime minister Nawaz Sharif and his family over their alleged corrupt practices.
The cricketer-turned-politician on Sunday tweeted the link the Daily Mail report titled, “Penthouse pirates: How the mega-rich former prime minister of Pakistan and his sons have ploughed millions into London’s swankiest addresses to amass a vast property empire.”
“More on how the Pakistani nation’s wealth was looted through money laundering by corrupt rulers and their families,” Imran wrote.
More on how the Pakistani nation’s wealth was looted through money laundering by corrupt rulers and their families. https://t.co/1Lu8bYA5wU
— Imran Khan (@ImranKhanPTI) June 24, 2018
The PML-N, however, strongly dismissed the report calling it “unfortunate and against set rules of journalistic impartiality”.
In a statement, party’s spokesperson Marriyum Aurangzeb said the British daily has attempted to influence the ongoing trial in Pakistan by giving it a specific angle.
Publishing the news story at this juncture is an attempt to deprive the former PM and his family of their fundamental right of self-defence, she added.
Nawaz and his family are facing three corruption references pertaining to Flagship Investment, Azizia Steel Mills and Avenfield properties at a NAB court in Islamabad.
The former premier and his sons, Hassan and Hussain, have been named in all three NAB references, while Maryam and husband Safdar have been named only in the Avenfield reference.