FIA’s final charge sheet accuses Waqar Zaka of luring public into illegal cryptocurrency trade

The Federal Investigation Company (FIA) has filed a ultimate cost sheet in opposition to tv host and social media activist Waqar Zaka in a case pertaining to a cryptocurrency rip-off.

Because the case got here up for listening to earlier than Judicial Justice of the Peace (East) Mukesh Kumar on Thursday, Advocate Salahuddin Panhwar filed his energy of legal professional on behalf of Zaka, who is alleged to be absconding, in addition to an software requesting the courtroom to condone his shopper’s absence till he returned from overseas.

Taking the applying and energy of legal professional on report, the Justice of the Peace adjourned the listening to till Jan 19 with a path to the lawyer to advance his arguments on the subsequent date to fulfill him in regards to the condonation plea.

On the earlier listening to, the courtroom had issued non-bailable warrants for the arrest of Zaka. Earlier, the investigation officer, Ramesh Kumar, submitted the cost sheet stating that in the course of the course of investigation, Zaka was allegedly discovered concerned in luring the general public into doubtful on-line ‘Preliminary Coin Providing/Crypt Foreign money Programs’ and utilizing social media platforms to advertise and advise the youth to spend money on the speculative risk-based enterprise even supposing it was prohibited by the State Financial institution of Pakistan.

He alleged that the accused additionally charged individuals, who got here in contact with him via social media, for these programs, including that he additionally launched a doubtful coin, ‘Tenup’, to tempt the general public into becoming a member of his ‘fictitious enterprise’.

The cost sheet stated Zaka allegedly used his salaried financial institution accounts for overseas remittances, suspicious transactions and elevating funds. Muhammad Aman Khan, senior supervisor of remittances at a non-public financial institution, acknowledged that overseas remittances have been obtained into an account with the title of Waqar Zaka seventeen instances, together with 12 from a US-based firm and ultimately the account was closed after he failed to supply any justification for the remittances having been credited right into a salaried account, it stated, including that overseas remittances have been additionally obtained in his salaried account at one other financial institution.

Throughout the investigation, the investigation officer stated he wrote a letter to the financial institution’s head of compliance to supply the main points of whether or not the alleged transactions have been reported to the Monetary Monitoring Unit (FMU) or in any other case and in response to his letter, financial institution officers stated three suspicious transaction stories (STRs) had been filed with the unit in 2018, 2019 and 2021 in opposition to Zaka.

“This reveals that accused Waqar Zaka used his salaried account for overseas remittances and made suspicious transactions, for which he couldn’t present any justification to the financial institution involved and ultimately three STRs have been reported to the Monetary Monitoring Unit, State Financial institution of Pakistan,” he maintained.

The cost sheet stated Zaka had allegedly dedicated offences punishable below the sections 13 (making, acquiring or supplying gadget to be used in offence), and 14 (unathorised use of identification data) of the Prevention of Digital Crimes Act (PECA), and 406 (punishment for prison breach of belief), 420 (dishonest and dishonestly inducing supply of property), 468 (forgery for objective of dishonest), and 471 (utilizing as real a cast doc) of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC) in very tactful and technical method. Nevertheless, it stated no proof had been discovered relating to the sections 3 and 4 of the Anti-Cash Laundering Act (AMLA).

Earlier within the FIR, the company acknowledged that an inquiry was launched in opposition to Zaka upon receipt of a supply report from the Monetary Monitoring Unit (FMU) in August, 2020. The report collected by the FIA from the related banks revealed that over the past three years, transactions of over Rs173 million have been noticed in his financial institution accounts, together with an mixture credit score of Rs86.1 million and debt of Rs87.1 million, it stated, including that funds have been being credited into these accounts via overseas remittances (interbank funds switch) and clearing of cheques, which have been subsequently debited via inside switch to accounts of his members of the family.

It acknowledged that Zaka used social media for charity functions and worldwide funding, receiving Rs3.6 million via telegraphic switch from a US-based firm, which have been withdrawn via the pay order and interbank fund switch.

“The a number of information, blogs and movies have been discovered on a public database which transpires involvement of accused Waqar Zaka into cryptocurrency/digital property,” the company claimed. “Throughout the enquiry, Bitcoin/cryptocurrency-related posts have been discovered on his Twitter account, the accused additionally promotes cryptocurrency like Bitcoin via YouTube channels,” the company stated.

It stated the State Financial institution of Pakistan didn’t recognise digital property as a authorized tender to retailer and switch worth, including that the central financial institution had additionally issued a warning relating to the danger of commerce in cryptocurrencies and prohibited the general public from buying and selling in any such currencies.