Bahria Town top official sentenced to 10 years in money laundering case

ISLAMABAD: An accountability court in Islamabad has sentenced a senior executive of Bahria Town to 10 years in prison after convicting him in a major money laundering case involving billions of rupees.

The court found retired Colonel Khalilur Rehman, chief operating officer of the real estate developer, guilty of laundering about Rs1.6–1.7 billion through illegal money transfer channels, including hawala and hundi, and ordered the confiscation of assets deemed to have been acquired through illicit means.

Judge Nasr Minallah of the accountability court also imposed a fine of Rs25 million on Rehman in the ruling.

According to the verdict, investigators found that funds linked to Bahria Town had allegedly been transferred abroad through informal money transfer systems since 2007, undermining Pakistan’s financial system.

The case was registered in August 2025 under sections 3 and 4 of the Anti-Money Laundering Act following an investigation by the Federal Investigation Agency.

The trial reviewed documentary evidence and testimonies from 12 witnesses before reaching a conclusion in less than six months despite procedural delays.

The court said the use of hawala and hundi channels for transferring illegal funds constituted a serious financial crime and stressed that the state would continue strict action against such offences.

Other suspects in the case, including property tycoon Malik Riaz, his son Ali Riaz and Shahid Qureshi, have already been declared proclaimed offenders by the court.