Apr.06, 2010

KARACHI: South Judicial Magistrate Dr Shabana Waheed on Monday acquitted Javed Khanani, Hanif Kalia and Munaf Kalia in a money laundering case due to lack of evidence.

The case was filed under the Prevention of Electronic Crimes (PEC) Ordinance and the accused had filed an application under Section 249-A for their acquittal.

The defence counsel stated in the application that former Pakistani president Pervez Musharraf had issued the PEC Ordinance on December 31, 2006 and it had expired on April 30, 2007.

However, the Federal Investigation Agency registered the case on November 15, 2007.

The counsel said the prosecution had been unable to present before the court even a single evidence against the accused.

The court pronounced its judgment in the presence of the prosecution and defence counsels after hearing the arguments.

Earlier on November 7, 2008, FIA had arrested Munaf Kalia and Javed Khanani, who confessed to having illegally transferred billions of dollars outside Pakistan in the last five years.

FIA’s Lahore Crime Circle had conducted raids after intercepting a telephonic conversation on November 5 about the illegal transfer of about 0.5 to one million dollars from Gujranwala.

The agency raided a KKI franchise in Gujranwala and seized $786,000 and four vouchers of Hawala (illegal transferring of foreign currency).

The franchise’s officials had named Munaf Kalia and Javed Khanani as masterminds of the embezzlement.