Faryal gets pre-arrest bail in Rs35bn money laundering scam

KARACHI: A circuit bench of the Sindh High Court (SHC) on Monday granted six-day interim bail to Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) leader Faryal Talpur in a Rs 35 billion money-laundering scam that also involves her brother, former president and PPP Co-Chairman Asif Ali Zardari.

Earlier in the day, Faryal Talpur submitted a petition in the court for bail in the money laundering case.

The plea was submitted by her counsel Farooq H Naek, stating that the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) had declared his client as absconders. He demanded the court to take action in this regard.

Zardari, Faryal and their associates are accused of sending Rs35bn abroad through fake accounts after which their names were placed on Exit Control List (ECL).

Asif’s close friend Hussain Lawai and his aides are also alleged of opening 29 fake accounts in the Summit Bank and United Bank of Pakistan Limited.

According to the FIA, 29 accounts were opened in the name of seven people, including a woman.

The police FIR [first investigation report] said that M/S Zardari Group (Asif Ali Zardari, Faryal Talpur, etc) got Rs15,000,000 and were among the beneficiaries of the transaction trail of fake bank accounts maintained by Omni Group, owned by Anwar Majeed, another close aide of the former president.