Capt (r) Safdar shifted to Adiala jail

ISLAMABAD: Former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s son-in-law retired Captain Mohammad Safdar, who was awarded one-year imprisonment in the Avenfield properties references, was shifted to Adiala jail on Monday, ARY News reported.

A National Accountability Bureau (NAB) team shifted the PML-N leader to prison after producing him before Accountability Judge Muhammad Bashir amid tight security.

Security was beefed up in and outside the Federal Judicial Complex which houses the accountability court to avoid any untoward incident.

On Sunday evening, NAB arrested Safdar in Rawalpindi where he led a rally of PML-N supporters for hours and later shifted him to its regional office in the twin cities.

The PML-N leader requested NAB officials to let him reach a nearby party office along the rally where he said he would formally surrender.

Afterwards, the officials escorted him up to the PML-N office where he was finally taken into custody.

He came out of hiding two days after the pronouncement of the verdict in the Avenfield reference. On Friday, when the verdict was announced his whereabouts were unknown and his cellphone switched off.

Sharif and his daughter Maryam Nawaz, who have been in London to take care of ailing Kulsoom Nawaz, are set to return home on July 13.

The Bureau has already obtained warrants for their arrest upon their arrival at an airport.

The former premier was awarded 10 years in prison, while his daughter and her spouse Capt. Safdar were handed seven years’ and one year’s prison term, respectively.

Judge Muhammad Bashir ordered forfeiture of their properties in the Avenfield Apartments and Park Lane of London. He imposed a fine of £8 million (approximately Rs1,292m) on the former premier and £2 million (approximately Rs323m) on his daughter.

Besides, three convicts were awarded an additional one-year imprisonment, which will run concurrently for not cooperating with the National Accountability Bureau (NAB).

According to the verdict, the prosecution failed to establish the charge of corrupt practices against them.

Sharif’s two sons – Hussain and Hassan Nawaz – were declared fugitives and warrants for their arrest were issued for staying away from the trial proceedings.

After their conviction, Maryam and her spouse couldn’t contest the upcoming polls. Capt Safdar was to contest on a national and provincial assembly seats in Mansehra, while Maryam from a national and provincial assembly seat in Lahore.

Members of the Sharif family have decided to appeal against the verdict through Nawaz’s lawyer Khawaja Haris.

Haris is preparing the appeals in accordance with the judgment passed.

Legal experts predict that if the convicted do not return in the next ten days, obtaining relief will be difficult.