Swiss Judge Seeks Indictment of Pakistan’s Bhutto
A Swiss judge has formally demanded the indictment of Pakistani ex-Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto for alleged money laundering based on contracts with two Swiss companies, the magistrate said Wednesday.
Geneva Judge Daniel Devaud, who has already indicted Bhutto’s husband, Asif Ali Zardari, on similar charges, said he sent the formal demand to charge the Pakistani opposition leader on Tuesday to Swiss federal authorities.
Bhutto denied Wednesday that she was guilty of graft and accused the Swiss judge of overstepping his authority.
“I have done nothing wrong, and I feel absolutely bewildered that somebody can be so defamed by a magistrate sitting in a faraway land,” Bhutto said in Karachi, Pakistan’s main commercial city.
Devaud has requested that Swiss authorities forward the indictment to Pakistani authorities to serve on Bhutto, who has had her passport revoked by the government.
The Swiss judge said he was formally asking Pakistan to charge Bhutto with money laundering linked to kickbacks.
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