Prime suspect in TT scandal involving Shehbaz Sharif arrested

ISLAMABAD: A prime suspect in a telegraphic transfer (TT) scandal involving Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) President Shehbaz Sharif, identified as Ali Ahmed Khan, has been arrested from Islamabad, ARY NEWS reported on Tuesday.

According to details, Ali Ahmed Khan was wanted by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) and has been absconding for the previous two years.

He remained posted as director of strategy at the Chief Minister House Punjab during the tenure of Shehbaz Sharif.

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According to NAB sources, Ali Ahmed was accompanied by MPA Malik Ahmed Khan at the time of the arrest and the latter also tried to create hindrance for the officials of the accountability watchdog during the arrest.

“The MPA sat inside the vehicle with the suspect in a bid to resist the arrest,” they said.

In September this year, it was reported that a money changer who used to send TTs in the name of the Sharif family from abroad is under the custody of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB).

While denying reports that NAB is investigating cases against Shehbaz Sharif and Suleiman Shehbaz over their London accounts, the sources said that they were rather investigating over Rs 200 billion transferred through TTs to the Sharif family members.

The money changer who facilitated the TTs for the Sharif family is under arrest, they said.

An approver in the TT case, Aftab Mahmood’s statement was also run during ARY NEWS programme, Power Play, that quoted him as saying that he was operating a money exchange in Britain from 2004 when his cousin Shahid Rafique asked him to facilitate some TTs in 2008.

The TTs were sent to the accounts of Sharif family members including Hamza Shehbaz, Suleiman Shehbaz, and others, and the names of the account beneficiaries, he said.

He further said that in 2008-09, he sent 24 fake TTs amounting to US$2.4 million. “I neither know the ones who were sent TTs nor they handed over the money to me,” he said adding that Shahid Rafiq received the cash.