ISLAMABAD: Former adviser to the prime minister on interior and accountability and an officer of the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) along with other persons were booked by the capital police under different charges, police said on Saturday.

The case was registered at the Secretariat police station under section 420, 468, 471, 385, 396, 389, 500 and 506 of Pakistan Penal Code (PPC) in response to a complaint lodged by Omer Farooq Zahoor, a resident of Dubai and an entrepreneur. He also served as an African country’s ambassador at large. Mr Zahoor is the person who had revealed that he had bought a priceless watch of Toshakhana from a former prime minister of Pakistan.

Along the former adviser Shahzad Akbar Mirza and FIA officer Ali Mardan Shah, Khushbakht Mirza, Mariam Mirza, Maira Khurram and Umaid Butt have been booked in the case.

According to the FIR, the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA)’s Corporate Crime Circle in Lahore had initiated an inquiry based on a report submitted by the applicant’s ex-wife Khushbakht Mirza. The inquiry led to the registration of two FIRs dated October 5, 2020, and October 10, 2020.

Complainant says he was framed on basis of forged documents and then blackmailed

One of the FIRs accused the applicant and others of defrauding investors in Switzerland while the other accused them of bank fraud in Norway. However, these allegations had already been investigated and closed both in Pakistan and in the respective countries involved, said the FIR.

“FIA officials registered the false case at the behest of Shahzad Akbar, the then special adviser to the prime minister on accountability, who allegedly prepared forged documents in his office in the presence and convince of all the accused mentioned above,” the FIR said, adding the adviser obtained approval from the cabinet, concealing the fact that the cases had already been closed in Switzerland and Norway.

“Following a thorough investigation, the joint investigation team (JIT) concluded that the allegations in the FIRs were false, frivolous and based on forged documents,” the FIR said, adding, consequently, the JIT submitted cancellation reports to court for both the FIRs.

The court agreed with both the cancellation reports, it said, however, the accused in collusion with Umaid Butt and Ali Mardan Shah (officials of FIA) allegedly resumed their activities of blackmailing and extorting money from the applicant and managed to have false criminal cases registered against him and members of his family.

They also threatened the complainant of registering more cases and extorted money and defamed him, the FIR said, adding on many occasions they threatened to kill him.

He was also subjected to blackmail, threats, harassment and extortion on multiple occasions on the basis of forged documents prepared by the accused person, it said.

“Therefore, it is request that a criminal case be registered against the aforementioned individuals for registration of false criminal cases, forgery of documents, committing fraud, using forged documents, extortion under the pretext of false case registration, and blackmailing.”

A police officer told Dawn that the case was registered, but the FIR was sealed till further orders. Investigation or legal action over the FIR will start whenever it will open under the directives of the senior command, he added.

Published in Dawn, May 21st, 2023