LAHORE/ISLAMABAD: The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has decided to get arrest warrants for Chaudhry Moonis Elahi, the son of former Punjab chief minister Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi, on charges of being involved in the multi-billion-rupee NICL scam.
Authorities said that Moonis Elahi was being summoned on charges of receiving Rs220 million out of Rs2.5 billion misappropriated in the National Insurance Company Limited (NICL) land scam.
Officials said that he (Moonis) was told to appear before investigators probing the scam two weeks ago, but he was reluctant. “We have decided to obtain an arrest warrant as he failed to appear before the FIA despite a lapse of 16 days,” a senior investigator said.
The FIA is also learnt to have started gathering information regarding Moonis Elahi’s bank accounts and other assets. The FIA, sources said, had also contacted Interpol.
Extradition papers “regarding the arrest and extradition of Mohsin Habib Warraich have been sent and British authorities,” sources told The Express Tribune. FIA authorities are also seeking the extradition of Javed, one of directors of NICL.
On Wednesday, FIA teams conducted a number of raids for the arrest of Rana Muhammad Ali, an employee of the Warraich family.
The Lahore bureau of FIA sent eighth reminder to its Sindh chapter for the arrest of proclaimed offender Amin Qasim Dada, another NICL director. FIA Punjab teams also summonned Director FIA, Sindh, Moazzam Jah on January 28 on charges of providing shelter to a wanted accused.
Zafar Ahmad Qureshi has once again been appointed as the investigation officer in the case. He has now been appointed as additional director general of FIA at Lahore.
Qureshi is learnt to have changed the composition of the team investigating the case by forming a new three-member team.
“If there is any hesitation on behalf of any accused to appear before the team, arrest warrants can be obtained from the special court,” Zafar Ahmad Qureshi told The Express Tribune.
