Dubai Leaks: NAB to take details about leaks

NAB came into action on the issue of Dubai Leaks, it was decided to get details from the United Arab Emirates, media reports said.

The final decision on the writing of the letters of the other accused whose names have appeared in the Dubai Leaks will be next week.

According to the sources, NAB will write only for the details of those accused against whom NAB is already investigating.

The Dubai Property Leaks is investigative report which brought to light a substantial number of affluent Pakistanis who possess luxury properties in Dubai. The leaked information, part of the OCCRP’s Dubai Unlocked project, exposes individuals across diverse sectors including politics, the military, banking, and bureaucracy.

In recent years, Pakistani officials have attempted to uncover details about Pakistani citizens holding assets in Dubai to bring undeclared assets and income into the tax net. However, progress has been minimal. Dubai authorities have been reluctant to provide even basic information, such as the number of Pakistani citizens with Dubai residence visas, known as iqamas or Emirates IDs.

A political dimension also hinders these efforts: Pakistan lacks the geopolitical influence to demand this information. Now, journalists from numerous global media outlets have access to an extensive volume of leaked property data. This data includes information on over 23,000 properties listed as owned by Pakistani nationals up to the spring of 2022.

The leaked information offers a detailed overview of hundreds of thousands of properties in Dubai and their ownership or usage, primarily from 2020 and 2022. It was obtained by the Center for Advanced Defence Studies (C4ADS), a Washington, D.C.-based non-profit organization that researches international crime and conflict.

The data was shared with Norwegian financial outlet E24 and the Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP), which coordinated an investigative project with media outlets worldwide. Titled ‘Dubai Unlocked’, the collaboration includes 74 partners from 58 countries, with Dawn being part of this effort.