Karachi FIA Secures First Payment from Petroleum Company Over Rs47 Billion Levy Fraud

Karachi: The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) Karachi has announced that a petroleum company, responsible for causing a loss of Rs47 billion to the national treasury, has begun making payments following one of the city’s largest-ever recoveries.

A detailed report regarding the ongoing investigation of the petroleum company was submitted to the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) by Ayaz Mehr, Head of the FIA Karachi Corporate Crime Circle.

The report states that the company allegedly failed to deposit levies on petrol sales from 2019 to 2022 into the government treasury, resulting in a loss of approximately Rs47 billion. The Ministry of Energy and Petroleum’s Deputy Director, Ashfaq Ahmed, had filed the complaint, while 13 individuals—including company owners, two women, and members of the board of directors, including former MD ESC Tabish Gohar—were named as accused.

Investigations over two years were conducted under various officers before the company finally agreed to deposit the funds. An initial cash payment of Rs1 billion has been made, while the remaining Rs46.4 billion has been submitted through post-dated cheques along with an unconditional bank guarantee.

FIA Circle Head Ayaz Mehr confirmed that the report has been officially submitted to the PAC.