ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court rejected the bail plea of the chief executive officer (CEO) B4U Group in the Modaraba scam.
A three-judge bench, headed by Umar Ata Bandial, on Wednesday, heard the bail application of CEO B4U Saifur Rehman.
The apex court on August 17 had granted interim bail to the accused for two weeks, which was later extended until September 22.
Justice Mansoor Ali Shah said, according to the law, the SECP has referred Saif’s case to the NAB.
He questioned how much tax the accused is paying?
The NAB prosecutor said according to the FBR record, he is an employee of B4U.
The judge then questioned whether the accused has a crypto currency business.
The prosecutor said there is no evidence of crypto currency, adding, prima facie, he has no business.
Khosa contended that the Companies Act applied to the accused.
Justice Mansoor remarked how the Companies Act would apply to unregistered companies.
The special prosecutor National Accountability Bureau (NAB) informed the bench that B4U has committed Rs116 billion fraud.
He argued that the accused issued ads on Facebook, Whatsapp, and various social media websites.
He further said that 25 companies in the names of Saifur Rehman family members were formed.
Justice Mansoor questioned whether anyone had filed a complaint against the accused in the NAB.
The prosecutor replied that they have received 120 complaints by the victims.
The bench, however, restrained the NAB from arresting the accused from the Supreme Court premises.
Saif’s counsel Sardar Latif Khosa said that the accused is a billionaire; therefore, he be granted an opportunity to surrender himself to the NAB authorities.
The NAB officials, therefore, arrested Saifur Rehman from outside the apex court.
According to the NAB, B4U company is accused of cheating the public at large in the name of investment, for which, the SECP has already slapped a Rs4 billion fine.
Neither the company has any physical businesses nor any license from the central bank.
As per the NAB’s record, Rs11 billion were taken from the public through social media, which were found in as many as 26 bank accounts run by the company and further investigations are underway to calculate the total amount held by the company in other accounts.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2021
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