NAB Arrests Ex-Truck Driver Turned Tycoon in Rs. 40 Billion Kohistan Embezzlement Case

The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) has arrested a former dumper driver accused of orchestrating a multi-billion-rupee fraud scheme involving fake companies and large-scale money laundering. NAB in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa detained the suspect in Abbottabad, alleging he embezzled more than Rs. 3 billion directly from the government treasury and laundered over Rs. 16 billion through a network of bank accounts. The total scam is estimated at Rs. 40 billion. According to investigators, the accused posed as the owner and director of a fictitious construction firm, M/s Mumtaz Khan Construction Company, which was used as a front to siphon funds from the Contractors’ Security Deposit Head of Account, an account intended to guarantee the completion of public projects. Authorities say the suspect, once an ordinary dumper driver, set up multiple bank accounts to facilitate the movement and laundering of illicit funds. The company’s accounts reportedly served as the main conduit for fraudulent transactions, including the receipt of government treasury cheques. NAB officials allege the accused deployed sophisticated money-laundering techniques, such as “layering,” to obscure the origins of the stolen funds. Proceeds were allegedly used to acquire luxury properties, vehicles, and other high-value assets, both in his own name and in the names of relatives, name-lenders, and associates. The suspect was presented before an accountability court in Peshawar, which granted NAB an eight-day physical remand for further questioning and evidence recovery. The investigation is ongoing, with authorities seeking to identify additional accomplices and recover embezzled assets.